Two Sides To Death (what's yours?)
by 88MaoMao88
Summary: The next head of the Russian mob is reincarnated as Izuku after dying in a car crash. Anastasia doesn't know why she's been reborn, but she does know the storyline and she isn't about to be some sad little pity case. She's going to be a hero who saves people with a smile no matter what, even if she's not the original Izuku. (Rated M because I'm paranoid & Cover image isn't mine)
1. Prologue: The Beginning

**(Hey, this is a new story and my first time writing on here! I hope you enjoy reading it! This is going to be kind of an AU)**

_'Thoughts'_

**{Special Actions}**

**_~Memories~_**

* * *

Dying right as the paramedics arrive to save your sorry ass from a car crash is a cruel way to go in terms of irony.

Alas.

Here I am, in the abyss of what I can only assume is Hell given my life choices.

My name is Anastasia Volkov, born in Russia and immigrated to the US when I was 12.

My dad was the head of the Russian Mob: Viktor Volkov. My mother was his Queen, his right hand itself: Irina Ivanov.

They got married 2 years before I was born, and their relationship slowly deteriorated as time went on.

I was born and Mama became distant after finding out I had clawed my way out of her so fiercely she wouldn't be able to have another baby, Papa was happy at first but slightly disappointed he didn't have a true heir.

I was groomed to be a soldier, raised by money and blood and violence.

I was Mama's little Cobra and Papa's little Soldat.

My mother disliked me because my father was being pushed to find a new wife so he could have a true heir to carry the family name by my grandfather.

I was a prodigy in fighting and science, the arts intrigued me but I had to sneak out to paint and listen to music and dance like it was some horrible contraband.

I looked okay, decent curves, lean and muscular, pretty face, blue eyes, blond hair.

I spoke 5 languages, I idolized Natasha Romanov, I was polite and a magnificent liar, etc.

But my parents didn't know that I had a secret love of anime, I was maybe an otaku (most likely).

The time and effort that went into making beautiful tragedies and love stories for people to enjoy caught my attention at 13 and I had been watching anime ever since.

I died on a Saturday, frosted dew on the grass as the moon shined brightly beside the stars.

Not quite the day I thought I was gonna die on, but I digress.

I was invited to a party downtown by some friends, I went and we all got smashed.

Then Evan wanted to drive and I wasn't sober enough to say "no" so we got in his car and went tearing downtown like we were in a racing movie.

Too bad a red truck came around a corner too fast and smashed into the back of the car.

We went flying off the road and into a building, glass and blood went everywhere... It was not a pretty scene at _all._

Evan died on impact and I had a concussion, probably internal bleeding and more injuries I can't place over the overwhelming sensation of **pain**.

As I sat there, bleeding out next to my dead best friend as the paramedics were called by a frantic truck driver, I pondered what death would be. I bled out just as the ambulance arrived and I got yeeted into the darkness.

I don't know how long I was there, it could've been hours, minutes, days, months, hell even years.

I blinked and found myself in a new equally as dark void.

_What in the fresh hell?_

Turns out the inky abyss is actually liquid that I should most likely be drowning in but alas, I live.

**xXx**

But... What is this? I'm… Not drowning in a suspicious liquid that I am certain I am submerged in? Nani the fuck?

Oh no…. No no no _nonono_ I better not be where I think I am god so help me. I've read enough reincarnation fanfictions and all that.

I _**vehemently** refuse._

"Osu! Anata wa sore o okonau koto ga dekimasu misu!**¹**" I heard a foreign feminine voice encourage. Oh balls I really am being born again… Why has god forsaken me?

I know I broke Brock's nose with a book when I was in 8th grade but he had it coming for teasing the trans girl in my class!

…

Alright, fair enough, sending him to the hospital was a bit mean but c'mon!

Fine, maybe I had this coming but this is just bullshit.

I feel like I'm being shoved abruptly out of a condom inside of a squishy slime thing, which is not my best analogy but I'm probably in shock.

Is this really what birth feels like?

Oh god if I ever have kids I am apologizing to them the **minute** they pop out.

Slime covered my face and my ears feel waterlogged as I finally enter into this world.

Bright lights assault my poor undeveloped eyes and I cry out in pain because OW.

I close my eyes and sob as I feel the gravity of what's really going on hit me just like that stupid truck that killed me.

I'm really am baby again… Wow… I have no words. Just minutes ago I was a 17 year old Senior in high school with a sardonic sense of humor and violent tendencies and now I'm in a hospital being wrapped in what feels like sandpaper on my sensitive skin.

I sob loudly, crying out to a world that I have yet to know for the mental strain of my situation because _gods above I was a fucking baby again and I have just been born what even is my life anymore_.

Soothing noises enter my ears as soft, warm arms cradle my tiny body. _'So this is mom… She's nice and warm, I like her'. _I had tuned out the world during my mini-breakdown.

I think it's called disassociation.

Anyway I tuned back in to hear what I could only assume is my mother talking so I turn in the general direction of her voice and strain my tiny ears to hear what she's saying in somewhat clarity.

"Anata wa daijōbu, okāsan wa koko ni iru, dārin wa nakanaide!**²**" A cheery but tired voice comes from the giant dark blob holding me. So this is my mom… I hope she's better than the last one.

My lungs begin to tire out as my new mom hushed me gently, the bright lights and my mom's soothing voice washed over me with tiredness like a wave.

As I drift off in the midst of bright lights and soothing warmth, I wonder where my new father is supposed to be.

_'I can only hope he's nicer than the first one I had'_

* * *

**(Translations: I totally used Google Translate so feel free to tell me if some things need changing!**

***1: Push! You can do it Miss!**

***2: You're fine, mom is here, darling don't cry**

**The next chapter will be longer! Feel free to point out any spelling or translation errors that I might have missed. I don't have a Beta, might cross-post this on AO3)**


	2. Chapter 1: Reincarnation Not Recommended

**(Woop! New chapter! I made some changes to the story because my muse may have bashed me in the head with a brick but I was a little too hasty to write it down so I hope you aren't too disappointed! There is an OC in here, but she's minor and only somewhat relevant to the story.**

** The name of this fic has been changed from Green Spitfire to what it is now, sorry for the confusion!**

I have cross-posted this on my AO3 account.

**It has the same name and is under the account 88_MaoMao_88**

**I will also be posting any side-stories or the like on that account so feel free to check it out there!)  
**

_'Thoughts'_

**{Special Actions}**

**_~Memories~  
_**

* * *

I woke up again in a strange room that I'm 97% sure is my room. I was surrounded in pastel green and blue smears that I think are walls, and white cage bars that are most likely a crib. I pondered the supposed color scheme before coming to a slightly alarming realization.

_'No way, there's now way I'm unlucky enough to be reincarnated **and** be a boy'_

_'…'_

_'I am that unlucky aren't I?'_

I decided to put that train of thought in a little box to be dealt with later, right alongside continuing my mental breakdown over both dying and then immediately being reborn.

_'Was it really immediately after? Does time travel differently in the abyss of death? Was it an eternity in **the blink of an eye, a thousand years in solitude only to be-**' _

I force myself to stop staring blankly at the walls and look around the room a bit. I can open that conspiracy theory can of worms later on.

Compartmentalization, yay.

Belatedly, I realized I was not alone in this pastel prison. A looming giant with cascades of green flowing down their head and shoulders like a waterfall stood on my left as I blinked stupidly in the direction of said giant as it began to lean in.

This was seemingly a bit too much for my body's undeveloped emotional walls because I promptly burst into tears. Tears blurring my already horrid vision, I became practically blind as the figure frantically moved their hands about in... Soothing motions perhaps? The figure seemed to realize this was useless before scooping me up gently, holding me against their chest.

I cried harder, loud wails that left my lungs aching and my ears ringing slightly and **man** do I have a set of lungs!

My cries softened as the person's chest rumbled, voice soft and soothing as they rocked my tiny body in their arms. I blinked up at them, quieting down and trying to listen to them.

"Okāsan wa koko ni iru, nakanaide, subete wa daijōbu!**¹**" The woman soothed. The fading smell of sterilization lingering between floral scents seemed familiar before it clicked in my mind that this was my mother.

_'Does she dye her hair? Wait... Is she speaking Japanese!?'_

The thought, yet another realization (wow I'm having a lot of those lately), made me pause for a second. My mother had green hair and spoke Japanese, I was a baby currently and my father is nowhere to be found for the time being.

This feels like the beginning of some soap drama where I'm the main protagonist with anger issues and 3 part-time jobs to help support my single mom who never thinks about anything other than her kid's happiness because her husband left her to deal with me by herself.

Huh... If that really is the case then, while I don't condone (most forms of) murder, I am certainly not above it and nobody will ever find the body.

_Stop thinking about murder! I can't even see all that well, let alone move around enough to murder someone, calm thyself._

I need to stop tuning out because now my green mother was looking at me, smiling gently already having finished whatever she had to say and _dammit why didn't I study Japanese more when I had the chance!_

"Watashi no chīsana otokonoko wa anata ga kawai sugiru! Watashi wa, anata o aishiteimasu Izuku.**²**" Mom cooed at me as I blink up at her like an idiot.

_Wait that last word sounded like a name!_

I tried to ask Matcha Mother (MM for now) what that meant but all I managed was a gurgle and a spit bubble. I sighed internally, wanting desperately to facepalm as MM laughed at my plights.

I frown up at her but from her resulting snort and snickering fit I can only assume my death glare no longer made people wither and wilt, I'll have to work on that.

For the next couple of (humiliating) hours, I was fed and swaddled up in fabric before being placed back into my little cage. After that horrifying experience I realized the next several months were going to be spent being bottle-fed, swaddled in tiny clothing, shitting myself, and being bathed.

Once more, I burst into tears, praying that my mom would quickly potty train me so I could at least have **some** dignity intact by the end of the year.

**xXx**

3 weeks in and my mother _finally_ let me leave the house, I was beginning to wonder if I really **was** in jail for a couple days there. As I was manhandled gently into a... _Tiny basket? _

_Portable cradle? _

_Car seat thing?_

I don't even know what it's called but mom put me in it so she could go shopping for normal food that I so desperately wanted to eat. As Mom pulled me out I realized some of the blurry shapes and blobs looked a little... Odd.

If my eyesight wasn't so shitty I might have been able to find out what the hell was up with the people in this world, but alas.

I fell asleep on the car ride home and forgot about the strange colors, shapes, and sounds I had heard and seen at the store.

_Perhaps I should've payed more attention._

**xXx  
**

Four months in and I'm still half-blind and useless in every aspect of being a functional human.

_Joy._

Fun facts: I am indeed male this time around, and my father is still AWOL so he's either a deadbeat, dead, working overseas, or something of the like.

My Japanese had improved in... Well not leaps and bounds but I understand most conversations my mother is trying to have with me.

These past months have done _wonders_ for destroying my self-esteem and making me want to throttle someone.

Mom took me shopping for that mushy shit she calls baby food. The first time I ate it I totally spit it on her and what little remorse I felt was snuffed out when she tried again with something that tasted even more disgusting.

On a different note, the fundamentals of walking for a chubby baby with no muscle whatsoever is an ordeal that I had _severely_ underestimated. I hadn't started trying until a week ago because I was waiting to grow a little.

All of my attempts have landed me squarely on either my ass or my face.

Who knew babies skulls were soft enough to act like a bouncy ball when slammed against wooden flooring? I may have given myself some head trauma or something of the sort, the floor was softer now that I was squishy but once I drank my strong bone juice and got all skinny from running around, the floor was going to be _**very** painful **very quickly.**_

Currently, I was holding onto the bars of my crib and trying to stand, glaring out at the fuzzy world with disapproving eyes.

Who knew babies had such shitty eyesight for so long?

Certainly not me.

I wanted my eyes to fully develop so I could see my mother's face, I want to know if it's as gentle as her voice.

I want to see the color of her eyes and what emotions fill them when she looks at my face.

Speaking of eyes, my mother seems to cry more often than I do, which is an interesting development and I know who to blame for my bodies habit of tearing up.

This was gonna be a long couple of months while my eyes develop and I try to get my stupid fat baby legs to work the way I want them to.

I sigh angrily, glaring at pastel blue walls with lime green lining as I try to think of a plan for when I can finally run around and wreak havoc.

**xXx**

I laid in my tiny fluffy coffin, my mother next to me as we sat in the waiting room of the Doctor's office.

Oh how I _desperately_ want to ask the Doc what was up Bugs Bunny style, but alas.

As I'm carried into the room, I ponder re-learning some of the languages I already spoke.

Yes, that is a very good idea, I could write things down and curse in class with no one the wiser.

Plus, if anyone _did_ know anything I said, who was gonna believe them?

My evil cackle came out as more of a giggly gurgle that had my mother cooing at me.

_'Definitely need to work on my intimidation factor'_

"Midoriya-san? Anata wa ima isha o miru koto ga dekimasu.**³**" A nurse spoke, as my mother hopped up and led us to the room.

The nurse takes my vitals and all that jazz while we wait for the Doc.

A woman walks in with vibrant purple hair and golden eyes with slit pupils. I assume this is the Doc.

"Isha no Kurai Nīmidesu. Kenkōshinda no riyū wa nanidesu ka?**⁴**" The woman spoke.

Yep, it's the doctor.

"Just a regular check-up, Nīmi hakase.**⁵**" My mother chirped.

Okay, so this is a regular check-up but _what the hell is the doctor's name!?_

The following hour, I was poked, prodded, stripped, examined, and in a _very **bad** mood._

Suffice to say after being examined like a new-born kitten, my temper was seconds from detonating.

Luckily, mom noticed and the visit was wrapped up quickly.

My scowl and slight tears made my mother give my sympathy and pity looks on the walk to the car.

"Anata wa isha ga sukide wa arimasen ka, dārin? Watashi no kawaī otokonoko, nakanaide!**⁶**" Mom cooed, I'm too tired to translate her words so I just gurgle and snuggle into her arms. "Nemu-sōna akachan.**⁷**"

I drift off as mom reaches the car, surrounded by warmth and flowery perfume.

* * *

**(I decided to change a couple things. ****I always noticed that most BNHA reincarnation fics, _well the ones I read at least_, always have a person being reborn as someone of the same gender or if they become the opposite gender they transition back to their default or preferred gender. **

**At first I was gonna do a female Izuku, but then I thought that maybe sticking to male Izuku would actually help with some of the ideas I have for future chapters. So sorry if you hoped Anastasia would be a female Izuku!)**

**Translations: **

**1: *Mom is here, don't cry, everything is fine**

**2: *My little boy you are too cute! I love you Izuku.**

**3: *Midoriya-san? You can now see the doctor.**

**4: *I'm Niimi Kurai, a doctor. What is the reason for the medical checkup?**

**5: *Dr. Niimi**

**6: *Don't you like doctors, darling? Don't cry, my cute boy!**

**7: *Sleepy baby**


	3. Chapter 2: Recognition

**(Before you start reading, I'd like to show you all the stories that inspired me to make this fic. They're all amazing and I love them, they helped me get idea for this fic, and some inspiration. But! I'm trying to make sure this story has it's own path so if some things may be similar to their stories, it's not meant to be and I'm not plagarizing. Thank you!**

**Those stories are:**

**Yesterday Upon The Stair - PitViperOfDoom**

**Burn Your Wings - Crowbird**

**Just Another Poison - Intern15_NightVale**

**That's all! Enjoy, see you in the next chapter!)**

_'Thoughts'_

**{Special Actions}**

**_~Memories~_**

* * *

Baby life was boring, the most I could do to get around was crawl after a full 6 months of this new life, at least mom always cheered me on.

On the upside, my vision has drastically improved and my hand-eye coordination allows me to bat and grab at things.

Downsides, I'm crawling around like a little gremlin and I can't successfully grab a pen and _use it._

I understand most conversations I have with my mother, there are few things I don't but **_boy _**she can _talk._

My teeth also came in, which was an odd experience because I didn't notice until they broke the gums. Even then the pain normally associated with teeth coming in, one that I never experienced and had been hoping to, never came.

It had been _very_ disappointing.

The next few months I babbled and gurgled at my mother just so she can smile, I quite like the sight of it.

I did try to walk, but for now I'm confined to scuttling along the ground like some demented goblin so it's not much of an improvement.

The first time I smile at my mother she squeals despite the fact that it's gummy and lopsided like it's always been.

By 8 months my vision was nearly perfect and that's where things got weird because I finally realized where the hell I was.

I know there were plenty of clues but I was too busy being a baby and having random moments of disassociation and panic.

Now I admit, my reaction was a little... _Embarrassing._

**xXx**

I had been just past the 8 month mark, waking up from a nice nap.

I suspect my mother has the ability to magically know when I'm awake because she enters the room, every time I wake up from a nap, without fail.

My mother leaned over the crib and her face was in crisp clarity, like a well taken photo.

Big viridian eyes and emerald hair pulled back into a bun, tan skin flush with life and smile brighter than the sun.

"Did you have a good nap Izukkun?" Mom asked, voice full of love and warmth.

_I looked up at mom- no **Midoriya fucking Inko **_and promptly burst into tears.

"Oh no, no don't cry Izukkun! Momma didn't mean to scare you!" Inko blurted, picking me up and rocking me in her arms as she wiped my tears and hushed me gently.

Inko panicked and tried to calm me but my brain was currently blue-screening like no tomorrow.

_'I was in fucking My Hero Academia, I got reincarnated as Midoriya Izuku sweet Satan please let this be a cruel joke, by the **gods'**_

After my mental break from realizing I was in the BNHA Universe, my day was a little off-kilter.

I keep glancing to my- **Izuku's **mother with disbelief and shock.

After an hour I force myself to calm down because Inko looked so _panicked._

_'Okay, deep breaths, you're in My Hero Academia and you're Midoriya Izuku... That doesn't change anything, Inko is still mom and she's soft and nice and **loving **so fucking get it together'_

I slowly calmed down, blinking tears from my eyes and turning to mom.

Mom seemed to notice my mood rising and walked over with a shaky smile.

"Are you feeling better now Izukkun?" Mom asked, voice soft and eyes full of concern.

I blink, pause for a second, then force my lips upwards and I proceed to smile as wide as I can.

"Oh Izukkun! What a cute smile, wait let me go grab my camera!" Mom spoke hurriedly, running out of the room with me in her arms and grabbing a camera from god knows where.

"Smile!" Mom chirped, snapping a quick photo of my slightly wide puffy eyes and big gummy smile, face splotchy red from my impromptu crying session.

_'God that's the worst photo I've ever taken'_

But mom was smiling again, so I'll just have to live with the abomination of a photo for now.

**xXx**

After realizing where I was, I didn't freak out as much as I had thought I would when I saw mutation quirks on our next adventure to the store.

My eyes still nearly popped out of my head as my jaw dropped open when I saw people with purple skin, horns, wings, etc.

But I'd like to think it could've been a _lot _worse.

Quirks fascinated me, I don't know if Izuku's love of them just came with the body or if I was just as enamored as him but I hope his analysis skills are present too.

**xXx**

I spoke my first words when I turned 10 months.

It had been a battle of languages in my mind and careful planning and practicing when mom wasn't looking.

Mom had just given me a bath and dressed me, and as embarrassing as the diaper and onesie were, I was determined.

Mom was carrying me to my nursery when I decided it was time.

I lightly tap (read: smack) her cheek as gently as I can, patting it to grab her attention.

"What is it Izukkun? Do you need something? Are you hungry?" Mom asked, turning to me and cooing as she grabs my hand that was previously on her face.

I scrunch my nose in concentration, forcing my stupid baby mouth to work and praying it will listen.

"Mama!" I slur like a drunken buffoon, my mind fills with curses but before I can let them loose I hear a sniffle.

I blink, Mom was crying, lips trembling as she looked down at me with shocked eyes.

"What did you just say baby? Did you just speak Izukkun?" Mom asks, voice colored with surprise and happiness.

"Mama!" I insist as I pat her cheek and smile widely.

Mom bursts into tears, hugging me and babbling about how 'her baby was growing up too fast' and 'his first word was mama!'

I giggle and bunch up the fabric of mom's shirt as best I can in an imitation of a hug.

It took quite a while for mom to stop crying and finally put me in my crib but I didn't mind, the smile she wore nearly split her face in half and I was proud to be the cause of it.

**xXx**

Walking was not fun when you can't coordinate and all that, who knew something so simple was so difficult for the first time?

Once again, irony strikes because on my first birthday I managed to successfully walk without aid and without falling.

I was covered in cake and frosting, my steps were shaky and uncoordinated but the smile that split my face was wide...

Probably a little _too _wide, but I don't think Mom noticed so I'm counting it as a win.

Mom took a video and then picked me up and twirled me whilst singing my praises and _wow_ this whole 'I actually love my kid' thing is lowkey kind of nice.

The video is embarrassing as all hell and my smile is slightly demented hidden under buttercream frosting.

The bath I took to get rid of the sticky feeling felt like _success._

**xXx**

My second birthday passed as well, chocolate cake with strawberry frosting, a tiny 2 person party, it was nice.

Mom bought me books with lots of pictures, they were fun. I drew in blank notebooks a lot, my art skills are shit but I'm slowly improving, the blobs have gotten slightly more detailed.

Mom nearly took me to the ER the first time I drank bleach, but after I explained I was fine and the doctor confirmed it, they said it might be my quirk coming in early.

I nodded and asked her to buy some oleander and azalea flowers for me to nibble on while I draw.

Eventually we had a tiny green room full of poisonous plants and flowers, dangerous chemicals, and other life-threatening things.

We call it the Green Room, and I know not to use any container except for my special ones to put my concoctions in.

I loved it and mom seemed to get used to me defying the natural laws of poison and all that.

I had several containers in the fridge with warning symbols on them, we call them Experiments.

Life was nice.

**xXx**

After my first uninterrupted walk around the house without help months before my second birthday, I thinned out like crazy.

I was running around, walking, climbing, grabbing things, spinning around, and just having a good time.

My speech was nearly perfect, my reading has seen better days but I'm working on it.

My first sentence had been "You're so pretty momma!"

Mom cried for several hours, blubbering and hugging me, I'll never let her live it down.

During my months of elation at being able to move, I _finally _found out what I look like.

I hadn't been expecting to look like canon Izuku, not with my slightly pointed gray-tipped fingernails and the sharpness of my baby teeth.

_'And boy were those a bitch to deal, good thing my pain tolerance is more or less what it used to be (read: nonexistent).'_

My new looks were certainly just as odd as I had expected, if not a little more odd than anticipated.

My left eye was bright emerald, the color nearly toxic, forest green ringed my pupil. My right eye was royal blue, seemingly a sapphire itself, pupil ringed navy.

My pupils had a blurry red dots in the middle that faded into black and, when I tilted my head I realized my eyes reflected light like a cat's eyes did.

_'Interesting.'_ I scan my reflection to check my appearance, mom _did_ say we had new neighbors and we were going to greet them.

My skin wasn't exactly tan but it wasn't pale either, it was a creamy color, like I had a slight natural tan. Like I was healthy but didn't get out in the sun much, which was accurate.

Long, thick lashes framing doe eyes, chubby cheeks sprinkled with a smatter of star-like freckles, little pouty pink lips, a wild mess of pine needle green hair with a black undertone, all in all I didn't look half-bad.

I smiled in the mirror, petal lips stretching into a curve to show off pearly white teeth and sharper than normal canines. My smile widened, stretching the limits of the human face before I toned it down.

I grin at the mirror, the left side of my mouth curling up further than the right, showing off my left canine, and making my grin a slight smirk.

Begrudgingly, I admitted that Evan was right when he told me my grin made me look like a snaggle-toothed Russian Blue, _but he didn't need to know that._

I looked normal-ish, there was little too much wisdom in my eyes and a slight strangeness to my aura, but _honestly, _who would even notice?

My little purple shirt with cat whiskers and a nose on it was cute, my tan shorts reached my knees, and my black socks peeked over the edge of my red sneakers.

I curl my lips into a small, socially acceptable smile that wasn't lopsided or too wide.

I nodded to the mirror, satisfied with my inspection, before running over to mom to help greet the neighbors.

"Ready to go Izukkun?" Mom asked, holding my hand with her left and a package of cookies in her right.

I nod with a smile as mom leads me out of the apartment and to the park that was just around the corner.

"Momma, I thought we were meeting the new neighbors?" I inquire, looking around the park with curious eyes.

"We are, I met one of them yesterday at the store and it turns out she was my friend in high school! We agreed to bring ours kids and meet up at the park today! Isn't that great? You'll have a friend to play with!" Mom spoke excitedly at the prospect of seeing her old best friend so I nod and let her lead me through the grass.

"Ko-chan! Hey over here!" A loud female voice called out. Both mom and I turned to see a woman with short, spiky blonde hair and ruby colored eyes.

_'Oh fuck me, I'm meeting the Bakugo family this early? This is bullshit'_

"Mitsuki-chan! It's so good to see you!" Mom chirped as her and Mitsuki embraced.

I stood there a little dumbfounded, glancing around suspiciously trying to find the little red-eyed demon that's supposed to be my future friend.

"It's great to see you too! My brat is over on the playground right now." Mitsuki spoke before her red gaze found me. "Oh hello there, are you Izukkun?"

"It's nice to meet you ma'am." I speak, sticking a hand out and smiling at her.

Mitsuki looks surprised before she barks out a laugh and ruffles my hair and Mom gives a fond shake of her head as she smiles at me encouragingly.

"He got more manners than my brat that's for sure! Call me Aunt Mitsuki!" Mitsuki's eyes are full of mischief and I don't trust her for a second but, I suppose it can't hurt, so I nod nonetheless.

"Okay Auntie Miki." I chirp, her crimson eyes widen before she smiles widely.

"He already gave me a nickname! Oh if only Katsuki was as sweet as him." Aunt Miki grumbles before turning to mom. "Masaru is off doing some other shit, how about we catch up while the kids play?"

"Of course Mi-chan! Do you wanna go play with Aunt Miki's boy, Izukkun?" Mom turned to me, crouching down and smiling. I nod, turning to look around for the supposed offspring.

"Oi! Who the hell are they old hag?" A childish voice interrupts.

_'Speak of the devil and he shall arrive'_

"Don't' call me hag you brat! This is my friend Ko-chan, call her Auntie Inko." Aunt Miki gestures to mom and Katsuki grumbles before he turns to me with scrutinizing eyes.

"This is Izuku, Ko-chan's son. Izukkun this is my brat Katsuki." Aunt Miki introduces, Katsuki glares at me as I nod.

Mom smiles, turning to Aunt Miki and sharing quiet words before turning back to us.

"Mom and Aunt Miki will be right over by the trees over there." Mom points to trees near a small field of grass. "Why don't you and Katsuki go play while me and Aunt Miki catch up?"

"Okay momma, I'll go play and you can talk to Aunt Miki." I grin, eyes crinkling.

Mom nods and Mitsuki leads her over to the trees while Katsuki turns to me with a childish scowl.

"Let's go play before the hag comes back." Katsuki snaps, walking towards the patch of grass.

"Okay, my name is Midoriya Izuku." I say, catching up and walking next to him.

"I'm Bakugo Katsuki, don't forget it." Katsuki speaks, turning to me.

"Okay Katsu, let's go play tag." I grin as Katsuki's eyes widen a little.

"What'd you just call me nerd?" He growls.

_'Just be happy it isn't Kacchan you little brat, keep the act up and I'll start calling you that just so I can see you squirm'_

"Katsu, it's your new nickname. You can give me a nickname too if you want." I say breezily.

"Whatever, I'll call you Izu okay stupid?" Katsu hisses, cheeks tinged pink.

"Sure thing Katsu." I smile, giddy at the new nickname. I lightly hit Katsuki's shoulder before running and throwing some words over my shoulder. "Tag! You're it!"

"Izu! Get back here you little shit!" Katsu roars, tearing after me as I laugh loudly and dance out of the way of his tiny hands.

* * *

_**(And that's how Katsu and Izu met lol. I hope this chapter doesn't feel too rushed! If you find any mistakes, grammar/spelling errors, feel free to point them out. See you in the next chapter!**_

_**-Author Mao)**_


	4. Chapter 3: Friends

**(Hello again! This new chapter was fun to write! I had a little bit of trouble making sure the mystery stayed, well, a mystery. I hope I did a good job of that! I wonder what conspiracy theories you'll think of after you read this chapter...)**

_'Thoughts'_

**{Special Actions}**

**_~Memories~_**

Anastasia goes to school, fails at making a paper crane, gets lost in the forest, and meets a faerie(?)

* * *

Now, don't get me wrong the whole reincarnation thing is pretty wicked, but now I've got to deal with _kids._

Do you know how many times I had to deal with small children during my past life?

_Abso-fucking-lutely zero _because what kind of sane parent leaves their child with**_ the fucking Russian mob._**

So yeah, I wasn't exactly having a great time right now.

Why, you ask.

Well, my day was already horrible because I woke up, but God has it out for me, so my day kept getting progressively worse.

Since I was a smart little cookie at just past age 2 and nearing 3, it was time for preschool.

I've been friends with Katsuki for about 4 months, he's just as explosive as his future quirk.

He isn't quite to the whole 'I'm better than you' thing he's got going on in middle school, but he'll get there.

And when he does, I'll knock him down a peg, remind him what friends are, maybe stomp his face in a little, and we'll go on in life.

So what if I'm soft for Aunt Miki sending fond little smiles our way when she catches us playing together? Or how she makes my mom giggle like a school girl with a crush because of her crude jokes and profanity?

_It's fucking adorable okay? **Sue me.**_

Back to the main topic at hand, small children are all little crotch goblins and I'm in desperate need of a bat so I can stop the screeching sound they're making.

Alas, I don't have a bat and I doubt I'll be able to acquire one on such short notice so I'll settle with ignoring the banshees currently 5 feet away from me.

…

Never-fucking-mind, I'm cracking one of these little shits in the face with the first object I can get my chubby little goblin hands on.

_'How the hell did I even get into this mess in the first place?'_

**xXx**

I woke up to someone gently shaking my shoulder.

I crack an eye open and squint at the offender before sighing and burrowing deeper into my tiny bed.

"Wake up Izukkun! It's time for your first day of school with Katsuki! Isn't that so exciting?" Mom chirped, voice full of amusement and excitement.

I peel my eyes open and hide my scowl under my fluffy blanket.

Mom and her cheery demeanor are the only things that prevent me from snarling like an animal and trying to go back to the sweet embrace of sleep.

I huffed quietly and sat up to rub at my eyes.

"Yeah, I'm just sleepy momma." I mumble as mom giggles and helps me out of bed.

After getting dressed, doing my morning routine, and eating breakfast we were in the car on our way to my preschool.

When we arrive mom turns to me, holding my comically small bag, with damp eyes.

"Okay Izukkun, I'll walk you in and then I'm off to work!" Mom's bubbly voice did nothing to hide her worry.

I nod, still sleepy as I grab mom's hand and let her walk me into the school.

Sniffles and whining children greet me, they're all holding onto their parents, while others are excitedly bouncing around as their parents try to contain them.

_'Gods I'm gonna need a drink after this'_

I snort at my joke as mom signs me in and chats with the lady behind the desk.

"Momma is leaving now but have fun at school! Mi-chan told me Katsuki was already in the classroom so you'll have a friend to start the day off with!" Mom spoke, handing me my bag and giving me a hug and some kisses to my freckles.

"Okay momma, I love you!" I smile, carefully making sure my smile wasn't too wide.

"Momma loves you too! I'll pick you up when school gets out!" Mom exclaims, kissing my forehead and heading to her car, waving the entire time.

I wave to her until her car disappears around the corner.

I turn towards the classroom door, hands tightening around the straps of my bag.

I let out a breath and enter the room of hellions.

"Izu! Why the hell did you take so long! I've been waiting forever." Katsu growls, running over to me. I can see he's uneasy in the new environment but still trying to be tough.

"I woke up late, sorry Katsu!" I chirp, letting him lead me over to where we leave our bags.

"Whatever, it's fine as long as you don't let it happen again shitty nerd." Katsu huffs as I chuckle at his pouty expression.

"I'll try, Katsu!" I hum, smiling_ just_ enough to show off my fangs knowing full well they intimidate Katsuki a little, not like he'd ever admit it.

Sure enough, Katsuki stiffened a little before the teacher came in and distracted us all with the promise of art class.

_'Alright, so maybe I was a bit of a sadist but this kid's gonna need someone he's at least a **little **scared of, if only so he'll listen to me a little'_

**xXx**

Trusting small hellions with scented markers, paper, glitter, and crayons was a _grave_ mistake.

I have purple glitter smeared all over my freckles, several little blobs and flowers done in an array of rainbow colored markers on my arms, and am currently folding pastel orange paper into a tiny crane to the best of my ability.

There are children screaming and laughing whilst running around while others actually trying to make art.

My tongue was colored blue because there were scented markers, and while it may have smelled like blueberry, it did _not _taste like blueberry.

I mean, I still ate the marker regardless of the fact that it tasted like disappointment instead of artificial blueberry.

The teacher was nearly in tears, frantically running around trying to contain all of us.

_'You poor bastard, sucks to be you'_

Alright, maybe I was getting a bit carried away while hiding under the guise of being a small, ignorant child.

Honestly, the teacher should thank me, while yes I may have put an absurd amount of red glitter in Katsuki's hair, I still managed to get him to shut up and sit down by challenging him to an origami contest.

Well, with the way she's currently giving me the stink-eye, I might just let the little demon run around and wreck shit instead.

"Kids please! Calm down!" The teacher's cries were drowned out by delighted screeches as a child with ram horns found the glue stash.

The teacher turned to me with teary eyes as I was seemingly the only child who could tame them.

I cock an eyebrow at her before turning back to the table and continuing to make my little paper crane.

Katsuki's grumbles and crinkling of paper and my own serene paper folding was interrupted by an overeager child with wings slamming into the chair on my left.

In unison, Katsuki and I snarled at the winged heathen and sent him back to his table in tears.

I turn back to my paper crane only to find it gone.

"What." I say flatly as I watch Katsuki crumple my beautiful crane in his sweaty little goblin hands.

"Screw your stupid crane! Mine is better anyway!" Katsuki sneers.

"How _dare._" I gasp, offended, before narrowing my eyes and standing to go round the table and stand next to him.

"You'll regret that you little cretin." I hiss at him before leaning over and smacking him out of his chair.

"HEY!" Katsuki yells as he stumbles back up to growl at me.

"That was my paper crane you little gremlin!" I snap back as I level him with a glare.

"Who cares?" Katsuki snarls at me, getting back up and shoving me.

"Just because you didn't like my crane doesn't mean you get to _destroy _it!" I snarl back, shoving him on his ass.

"Kids! Kids! No need to fight, I'm sure this can all be fixed!" The teacher hurries to calm us as she rushes over.

"Whatever!" Katsuki grumbles, I bare my teeth in a silent snarl at him.

The teacher looks panicked as she looks around to room and sees the chaos, I watch her take a deep breath as try a new tactic to get us under control.

"Okay! Time to clean up so we can go outside!" Sensei chirps, trying to diffuse the situation and get us all away from the arts & crafts.

The children scream and scramble to shove everything back into colored bins. It looks like a mess but most of the room is clean except for a couple papers glued to the table and an_ astonishing _amount of glitter in the carpet.

Katsuki and I exchange glares as we line up to go outside.

"Have fun kids! Don't wander too far!" Sensei warns us as everyone scatters and rushes off to the playground equipment or the sandbox.

Katsuki huffs and turns away from me to go run off to the jungle gym. I glare silently at his back before turning to walk towards the forest near the edge of the tiny field of grass.

_'I swear if Katsuki ruins another one of my things in class, I'm nailing him'_

I wander into the forest, the rustling of leaves and the gentle swaying of the branches soothes me as I edge further away from the delighted screams of my classmates.

As I walk, the shadows seem to shiver and follow me, it's probably my child imagination.

I wander deeper into the forest before I realize I can't hear my classmates at all, no delighted screeches or excited yells.

I pause, looking around, I'm in a small clearing surrounded by trees, the sunlight is barely peeking through the branches of the trees.

_'I feel like I accidentally entered a space where reality is slightly altered, like a bathroom during a party or an empty parking lot at 3AM'_

"What the hell?" I ponder aloud as I turn walk cautiously around the edge of the trees. My mind feels slightly foggy, like cotton blowing in the wind found it's way to my thoughts.

_**T̶h̶e̶ ̶m̶u̶f̶f̶l̶e̶d̶ ̶s̶o̶u̶n̶d̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶g̶l̶a̶s̶s̶ ̶b̶r̶e̶a̶k̶i̶n̶g̶,̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶c̶k̶ ̶w̶a̶t̶e̶r̶ ̶s̶l̶o̶s̶h̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶o̶v̶e̶r̶ ̶b̶l̶a̶c̶k̶ ̶s̶a̶n̶d̶,̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ b̶u̶r̶g̶u̶n̶d̶y̶ ̶e̶y̶e̶s̶ ̶g̶l̶o̶w̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶e̶e̶r̶i̶l̶y̶ ̶i̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶l̶i̶g̶h̶t̶ ̶a̶s̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶s̶k̶y̶ ̶b̶u̶r̶n̶s̶**_

The wind picks up a little before I hear leaves crunching over fallen twigs, I whip around to see a kid my age in black clothing with dark purple shoes peering at me curiously.

His skin is pale, like white sand, his hair is inky black and flops in his face. The child turns to look at me with a smile full of sharp teeth, I ponder the possibility that I've somehow stumbled upon a giant faye circle.

His eyes are red, like blood, a crimson that seems to glow in the shade of the trees. It would be unnerving to any other person but for some reason it calms me, I definitely found a giant faye circle, fuck my life.

"Hello?" I ask him, the child's smile widens. I try to scour my brain to remember what happens to children in faye circles and my mind comes up blank, I knew I should've listened in that stupid fucking mythology class!

"Hi." His voice is a low rumble for a child, impossibly deep yet annoyingly shrill, it both grates in my ears and makes my muscles lax.

_'I do very much not like this but, I'm already dead, so getting snatched by a fae is not the worst thing that's happened to me'_

"Who are you?" I inquire, curiosity eating at me, as I turn to face him I realize he is much closer than before but I don't let it unnerve me.

_'God damnit, you never question a fucking fae! What is wrong with my brain right now!?'_

"I don't know, who are you?" He responds, tilting his head like a cat who found something interesting to knock off the table.

_'Okay so he's not a fae then because asking a fae a question is like signing your death warrant'_

"Are you lost? Or were you here from the beginning?" I question, tilting my head the same way.

"Curiosity killed the cat." The strange child responds, grin bordering a smirk.

"But satisfaction brought it back." I quote, taking a step forward. "You never answered my question."

"I suppose I didn't. But you should get back to your friends, they're looking for you." He tells me, eyes full of wisdom and a glint of _something_.

"Only if you come with me." I insist, offering him a hand, he gives it a glance before looking me dead in the eyes.

"Why?" He asks, eyes intense and searching for something in my own as his smile disappears.

"You seem lonely and I don't have many friends, it's a win-win situation." I reason to him.

He peers at me a little more intensely before he seems to find whatever he was looking for, because he relaxes and gives me a soft smile.

"Okay, let's be friends." He says, voice soft and hypnotizing, like a siren.

"Alright, let's go." I say as he reaches over and takes me hand. His hands are cold, like he stood out in the snow for a little too long, but they give off a strange feeling, like ink spilling over skin.

I let the odd (fae) child lead me through the forest, as we walk my classmates get louder, shrill yells of laughter and excitement.

"I hope to see you again, Izuku. I like you quite a bit." The child whispers in my ear, chilled breath puffing across my cartilage as the feeling of water sliding off my hand occurs.

I hear something similar to glass quietly breaking, muffled like I was underwater, I shiver and try to grasp at his hand but it's gone. My ears pop slightly and my vision blurs for a second before returning to normal, my body suddenly feels off kilter.

"What?" I turn to face him, but there isn't a trace that he was there.

_'How did he know my name? More importantly, where did he-'_

"Oi nerd! Where the hell did you go?" Katsuki barks at me, breaking my train of thought.

"I... Was in the forest." I respond slowly, mind sluggish and thoughts halting to random stops as I scan the forest for another trace of the strange creature that led me back to the playground.

The world feels like it's shifting and spinning underneath my feet before it settles, my mind suddenly sharpens and I blink at the oak tree in front of me.

'_What? I thought I was in the forest?'_

"What? Who cares, let's go play tag or some shit." Katsuki snaps, grabbing right hand and tugging me away from the trees.

_'His hand is warm, like holding a roman candle... How strange'_

"Alright Kacchan." I mumble, turning to look at the back of his head just in time to see his ears start to pink.

"Don't call me that dumbass!" Katsuki snaps, not looking at me as he frog-marches me to the grass.

I snicker and let Katsuki lead me to the playground, my head hurts a little but I think I can blame that on the screeching children.

Ugh, I can't wait for this day to be over.

* * *

**_(And that's all for this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it, if you find any spelling or grammar errors feel free to point them out! See you in the next chapter! - Author Mao)_**


	5. Chapter 4: Birthday Wishes

**(Hello! There are brief mentions of death, violence, murder, and a small mention of a dead body so if those make you uncomfortable you can skip some parts if needed! It's not very graphic but there are mentions of mutilation as well and wow this is sounding a lot worse than it really is... Anyway, hope you enjoy and feel free to give me feedback! Also, this chapter is extra _extra_ long and a total emotional rollercoaster so strap yourselves in.)**

_'Thoughts'_

**{Special Actions}**

**_~Memories~_**

(Anastasia unlocks more of her Tragic Backstoryᵀᴹ, has a flashback, cries, threatens a walking firecracker with body mutilation, traumatizes a teacher, and has seemingly been welcomed by the darkness. Just not in that order.)

* * *

My fourth birthday was just as uneventful as any other birthday in this new life so far. It started out as a normal birthday, mom woke me up and I got dressed before we ate breakfast. I was practically vibrating in my seat, being introduced to this strange new world of quirks was going to help me become the hero Izuku always wanted to be!

"Are you excited for your birthday?" Mom asked, smile wide and beautiful as she set down a plate of pancakes on the table in front of me.

"Yeah! I wonder what my quirk will be?" I asked aloud, the strange feeling that I had forgotten something looming over my head like storm clouds. I shook my head to rid myself of the feeling before devouring the pancakes with gusto.

_I should've paid more attention to that feeling that I was forgetting something._

**xXx**

It was 3 months and a week after my birthday when it finally smacked me in the face what I had forgotten.

I remembered it when Katsuki sneered at me when I asked him and his friends what they were playing.

"What are you playing?" I asked Katsuki, smiling wanly.

"None of your business _nerd_!" Katsuki spits out the word 'nerd' the same way one would say 'bastard'.

"And why is that, Sparky?" I snap right back, cocking an eyebrow as Katsuki screeches.

"Because you're fucking useless! You don't have a quirk you _fucking **DEKU!"**_ Katsuki bellows.

I blink slowly, pausing as his words register in my mind.

"Pardon?" I ask, mind reeling as _'oh shit this is what I forgot isn't it' _smacks me in the face like a brick.

The realization is shoved back temporarily to make place for white hot **rage.**

"What are you deaf too _Deku?_ You gonna cry? Need some hearing aids or can I just keep talking?" Katsuki cackles like being deaf is a joke as he gets in my face. I scowl, shoving him out of my face and grabbing his collar so I can get in his space.

I only hate people getting in my personal space bubble when it's on _their _terms, I never said anything about _mine._

My temper flares, a character flaw of mine really, as I remember deaf little Eliza who died in an alleyway because some kids from class stole her hearing aids and notebook to _'Hear her talk funny'_ and she was in the wrong place at the wrong time _and she **couldn't tell them that because she didn't even know.**_

"Now you listen here you walking fucking smoke machine, I don't appreciate you calling me that, but mom will be sad if I stomp your head in. So I'll say this as nicely as I can. _You make fun of disabilities like that again and I'm feeding you your hands finger by finger." _The snarl that left my mouth was nearly inhuman and Katsuki looks like he pissed his pants but all I could see was Eliza's bubblegum pink hair and _lifeless_ brown eyes.

_**~Blood splattered on concrete, staining pastel pink hair as it frames a lifeless face. She was coldcoldcold and gonegonegonegonegone-~**_

I closed my eyes, cutting off my train of thought quickly even as empty hazel eyes flash in my mind. Katsuki was silent for once as I shoved him away and raced into the forest.

I barely made it to the center of the forest before I had to double over and spew my lunch all over the grass, spitting through wheezy breaths that rattled in the back of my throat, teeth leaving indents on the meat of my thumb to muffle the quiet wails because apparently my child body can't handle the memory of a dead body either.

_Damn this is gonna be hella hard to explain to mom when Katsuki rats me out._

**xXx**

_'Fucking snitch' _I thought bitterly when my mom asked me if something happened today at school with Katsuki.

After getting grounded, I remembered _why _that argument had continued in the first place and let out every curse in every language I knew.

Better try and get a hold on my temper, it's a hell of a lot harder in an emotional kid's body but I can't keep lashing out _especially_ if I want to be a hero, nobody wants to be an Endickwhore.

I snorted quietly at my own joke before forcing myself to focus back on the task at hand.

_'God most definitely abandoned my timeline.' _I thought heatedly before snarling out a quiet curse and running to ask my mom to take me to the doctor to see about my quirk. 

**xXx**

The doctor's office was just as I remembered it, bland and bright with the strong smell of antiseptic.

The doctor called us in, I let my mother lead me to his office as I tried to brace this tiny, undeveloped body for what was about to happen.

"So what seems to be the problem Ms. Midoriya?" Doc asked, leaning his clipboard on his crossed legs.

I finally gave up on remembering his name so I called him Doc, an old joke that make me want to both laugh and cry because it was so familiar but it felt so _alone._

"Well, my son's fourth birthday was over three months ago and his quirk still hasn't shown up. I wanted to wait a little longer but Izuku wanted to check as soon as possible so he can go show off his quirk." Mom smiled at Doc, Doc nodded and turned to me with a grin.

"Eager are we? I suppose everyone is when they're your age. Why don't we take some x-rays?" Doc spoke, voice calm and eyes gentle.

I nod, not trusting my mouth to not blurt out that _I didn't have a quirk dammit!_

Doc smiled and took us to another room for an x-ray.

After the X-ray was done, we waiting around for a little bit making small talk.

Doc left to get the X-ray and returned with pity in his eyes.

"Ms. Midoriya, what's your quirk again?" Doc asked, hiding the x-ray from view.

"Oh, I can attract small objects, it's called Attraction." Mom smiled, something akin to confusion sparking on her face.

"And your husband's?" Doc asked, mom cringed a little, dad was a sore subject then I see.

"Hisashi can breathe fire, what does this have to do with Izuku's quirk?" Mom asked, eyes narrowing slightly.

"Well, you see Ms. Midoriya, I'm afraid Izuku doesn't have a quirk." Doc spoke in gentle soothing tones, like he needed to calm a wild animal.

I clench my jaw, teeth creaking slightly as I keep my mouth shut.

The shadows in the room rumbled and purred quietly.

"Y-You're saying my, my baby doesn't have a quirk?" My mother stuttered slightly, eyes getting wet.

"Yes Ms. Midoriya, I'm afraid Izuku is quirkless." Doc's voice had an odd edge to it, if I didn't know any better I'd say it was somewhat of a sneer.

"Prove it." The words tumbled out of my traitorous mouth before I could stop them.

**_"Q͛̾ue̮̹͈s̢͈̩͎̝̿̏͒̔ẗ́î̺̮̻̹̙̽ͮ͌ͭo̱͓̠̤͒̓̏̓ni͔̪͆ͥ̀n̵ͮg͒ͪ̓͆͗̓͋ ̩͞t̩̏̇ͅh̗͖̘̲̳ͬ̏̔͐̓͝e͉̙̘ ͎̣̰͇͖̖̂ͨ͐̒ͯ̐s̉͊ͬ̎̽͘y̬̠s̫̩̭̍ͣ̚te̠͓̭̯̼ͦ̇̍ͨ̊m?̷̯̬ͯ̌ ̤͚͉͇S̡m̵a̅ͤ͒r̭̒t̫ ͞lit̴tl̤̲̠͋͋̾e̤̜͙͔͈͂̔͗ͧ͂ ̛s̬̳̍͑h̸̩̺̓̓ā̤̭̣̺̤͖̃ͭ̀̎̚͢doͣ́̐w̗̘̮͕̑ͣͩ͛." _**Something chittered and rasped into my ear. My lips twitch, _'Perhaps the good doctor was wrong?'_

"What?" Doc and Mom spoke in unison as they turn to me.

I look up, straight into Doc's eyes and he cringes a little at whatever he sees in them but I don't falter.

"I said prove it. Prove I'm quirkless." I spoke slowly, tasting out the words to make sure I didn't blurt out an insult.

"Well, Izuku, you have the extra toe joint that every quirkless person has. Your parents are both fourth-generation quirk users and along with your un-manifested quirk, it's safe to say you're quirkless my boy." Doc spoke slowly, as though I was about to explode, as he showed us the x-ray of my foot.

"That-that can't be right! I know my quirk is weak but my husband's makes up for it. I-" Doc cut Mom off with a hand, her frantic blubbering cut off with a sniff as tears begin to pour down her cheeks.

"I know this is hard to believe Ms. Midoriya, but I'm afraid Izuku is quirkless. He doesn't have a quirk and he never will, I'm sorry." Doc's voice had no remorse in it, it was all pleasantries.

I felt a bitter laugh bubble in my throat and, unfortunately, as I stomped it down it came out as more of a strangled sound.

'_This kids whole life was ruined over a fucking toe joint, what the hell kind of tom-fuckery is this bullshit?'_

The shadows cackled in amusement, soft bursts of static accompanying their screechy, disjointed laughter. **_"W̵̛̹̣͆͋͋̍̕͘ha̶̞͂t̸̢̜̜̱̏̎̈́͗ ̶̛͇̻̦̤̞͙̚ s̲̝ͧͯna̷̗̺̰̞͚̅̍̎̕͠ͅṟ̶̛̱̘̯͓̅̊̃͠k!̶͎̳͚̼͓̖̊͋"_** They exclaim.

Mom took this as a sign that I was crying like she was, Doc got up and left us to our privacy.

Apparently my body didn't get my memo to toughen up earlier because I felt frustrated tears gather in my eyes.

My mother's sobs were of sorrow, regret, and apologies.

My tears were of injustice, rage, and frustration.

_In the end we were both crying so did it really matter why?_

**xXx**

Later that night I watched All-Might videos in the hopes that I could quell the storm brewing. Hell, it almost worked.

_**Almost.**_

Mom broke that spell by entering the room in a solemn manner.

_'You need this to remind you that this world isn't as pretty as you hoped, you need to add wood to the dying fire so that it can **burn**'_

"Mom, do you think I could still be a hero?" I asked, voice quiet as a feeling of dread began to creep up my throat. My mother sniffled, eyes wet, before bursting into tears as she hugged my small body to her own trembling form.

"I'm so sorry!" Mom cried, tears streaming down her cheeks as my heart fell through my chest to shatter on the floor like glass.

_'I'm sorry she said, weeping into my green dandelion fluff of a mane_

_But what she meant was 'No, you can't become a hero because you're my little intelligent, amazing, **quirkless** baby and that world full of powerful quirks has no place for you my child. _

_Stay home where you're safe and give up on this fantasy before I find you dead because of some insane super villain with an equally as insane quirk that you couldn't handle because you don't have one'_

All Might droned on in the background of the dark room as my mother sobbed into my hair, sobs full of anguish as her hands shook in their places on my back.

Despair bloomed in my chest where my heart would be if it wasn't currently on the floor in pieces.

**_"S͚̪͆͌ͮ͞ͅoo͕ͣn͔̜̎̽ ̝͚͖̗̞̗̒ͮ͌̓͑̈́li̎̚tẗ͈͕̩́͛̍lę ͙ͨshͬ͑̍ͪ̓̇ḁ̤̳͖̟̐̉ͤ̓̚d̗̲̜̳̲̳ͧ̉͛̓͋͗ơw̰̪̘͕̝̲̮̐̓̈́̀ͭ̇̋,̉̄ͤ͒̀ ̺̆𝓈𝐨๏𝔫." _**The shadows croon softly, warped voices full of anticipation and fondness. I ignore them as my emotions bubble to the surface.

I felt the bitter taste of **resentment** and **rage** at the back of my throat, hot tears burning my eyes and scorching trails down my freckled cheeks because _this wasn't_**_ fair._**

This was worse than the cold dismissal in the harsh Russian of my father's voice and the burning apathy in my mother's eyes as she turned the other cheek while bruises blossomed on my skin like flowers in spring.

Why?

Because I had been expected those reactions, that kind of pain, but _**this?** _

_It blindsided me like that bottle to the back of the head during that bar fight in Miami._

Unexpected and painful despite the fact that I knew it was bound to happen eventually.

I hiccupped before muffling sobs into mom's shirt, the smell of her perfume turning sour as we both sobbed under the cover of darkness in my room, All Might smiling away on the computer like I _wasn't __**tearing at the seams.**_

**xXx**

For the next few months, it was all everyone was talking about. Everybody's quirks were coming in and thanks to my reality check I knew exactly what that spelled out for my 'friendship' with Bakugo.

Katsuki has been getting meaner and crueler since my non-existent quirk has shown no signs of appearing.

I was about ready to just make him swallow his teeth the next time he calls me Deku.

I assume my mother informed the teachers, they keep giving me looks I didn't appreciate.

I mean they already gave me pitying looks but now there's disgust and sneers and they make me want to commit homicide.

_Not that anyone would be able to track it back to me anyway, but that isn't the point_

**xXx**

Half of the way through the day, right before recess, the words I had been dreading finally leave the teacher's mouth.

"Alright everyone! Since most of you got your quirks let's do an introduction with them before we move on with class." Tatsuya-sensei announced, my homeroom teacher had a glint of something I didn't care to place in his eyes when he glanced over at me.

My eyes narrowed as my classmates raced to get into a lopsided circle, excitedly chattering and buzzing with energy.

I knew he has it out for me but this is a new low and I wasn't going to take this sitting down.

I rise from my seat, moving to stand next to a child with hair made of sharp amethyst spikes in the circle.

Everyone introduces their quirks but I tune them out to look at the teacher, I tune back in at Katsuki's introduction, little confetti pops leaving his hands as sparks and smoke coil around his chubby fingers.

"You all know who I am, I'm Bakugo Katsuki and my quirk is Explosions and I'll be the number one hero!" Katsuki exclaims, wicked grin on his face and chest puffing out as our classmates gawk and marvel at him.

"What about you Midoriya?" The teacher ask politely, voice underlined with cruelty.

I narrow my eyes and straighten up, my classmates turning to me with excited eyes.

"I'm Midoriya Izuku, I don't have a quirk. I'm going to be a hero and none of you can stop me." I speak, voice full of determination and conviction as I look my teacher dead in the eyes.

**_"Ho̳̱̩̤̥͟w̠̱̰̜̒̑̑̚ ̤͓̪̘̟b̯̀r͇av͉̗̖̰͎͔͆͐̍ͣͧ͒̚ͅe̺̰͈̯!"_** The shadows snicker into my ear, soft chilly breaths puffing against my skin to raise goosebumps as phantom hands brush against my own.

My classmates, Katsuki especially, explode in disappointed and gobsmacked exclamations as my words sink in.

"You don't have a quirk and you still think you'll be a hero? I'd like to see you try _Deku_." Katsuki sneers, getting in my face and blocking my view of that bastard we call a teacher.

_**"L̻̲̠ͩͩ͋ĩ̗̲̔t̼̼̱͉ͮ͆ͣͫt͔̳̪͖͒͆̃ͣle b̳͖̓͋oͮͩͭ̍̐̚m̟͎͖̮̗ͨͥ̃̽ͪb ḇ̴̯̹͎̭̅́͗̓͊́̄͘oy̴͈̱̙͐̓̆̾͂̿͂͌̚ ̘̤ͦ̾ỉ̥̗̜͈̮̊͌̒ͯs͕͈̬̣̫̘̞̱͂ͪ͌ c̨̬̣o҉͍c͉̙̖̻͇̭k̏ͫy̵̙̮̭,̠̰̤͓̙̻̩͞ ͌́ne̺̽e̸̬͓̝͠d t̀͊̓ö̬ ̙̳f̬ͫix̴ ͂̾̎t̠̝ẖ̙ͦͪa̫̞͕͎̭̜̔̏̿ͭ͌͌t͒ͪͦ." **_The shadows sneer, voices full of disdain as the sound of it rattles against my spine.

I turn to Katsuki, eyes blazing with challenge and determination, I can _feel_ the shadows smirk against my shoulder.

"Watch me." I snap, voice sharp as Katsuki reels back in surprise, not expecting my sudden aggression or conviction apparently.

Before Sparky can try to turn me into a charred corpse, the bell rings.

"Alright kids, that's recess! Go on outside and play!" Sensei chirps, eyes hard and full of disgust as he glares at me.

My classmates speed out of the classroom, Katsuki joining them after a couple seconds with a sneer in my direction.

I turn to the teacher and smile slow as molasses, the same smile Evan told me made me look deranged.

Tatsuya-sensei freezes, eyes widening as my lips continue to curve upwards to show off my canines.

My eyes blaze, I'm sure I look like I need to be in a straight jacket right now.

I feel something croon softly in the air of the room, dark shapes shifting out of the corners of my eyes.

Something soft and cool curls around my exposed ankles, purring against my skin with soft overlapping whispers in too many languages for me to decipher.

"I'll see you back in class Sensei." I speak in a cold but chipper tone, voice loud in the sudden silence of the room.

The teacher flinches, taking a small step back as satisfaction floods my veins.

_'That's what you get you smug bastard, I hope you choke on your fucking lukewarm leaf water in that thermos of yours'_

I turn on my heel, walking out of the classroom with my feral smile still in place.

The shadows move with me, thrumming in my very _bones _as feather-light smoke tendrils curl around my fingers in a gentle but reassuring hold that leaves my fingers tingling.

_'The good old doctor is definitely wrong about me being quirkless that's for fucking sure__'_

The quiet thump, crash, and whimper are music to my ears and make my smile a little bit harder to wipe off on my way to the playground.

The darkness in the hallway seems as satisfied as I am, if not a little proud.

_'I'll investigate that later'_

I manage to wipe the smile off before I reach the playground, but I can still feel my lips twitching every now and then.

'_Patience is of the essence after all.' _I think smugly as Katsuki calls me over to the forest to interrogate me. 

**xXx**

Souta Tatsuya was a teacher, he taught at _Jamiko Preschool_, he has a loving wife and his quirk is Horns, it gives him ram horns.

Now Souta had a weak quirk, he knew it, that's why he was a teacher.

Souta knew what fear was, he got scared all the time when he was little. Panic was an old childhood friend as well.

But never once in his life has he ever feared that someone would kill him in cold blood without remorse.

Nor had he ever been afraid of the dark, never turning on small lights to chase the shadows away or anything of the sort.

**Until today.**

It started off as a semi-normal day, he woke up, had breakfast, kissed his wife, and went to work.

Now here's where some things are a little odd.

Midoriya Inko had left a note to not leave Izuku out of things, he was registered as quirkless a couple of days ago.

Souta sneered silently, quirkless people were useless and had no place in his class.

Izuku wanted to be a hero, but that was impossible without a quirk.

Even weak quirks were better than nothing at all!

So he took it upon himself to show Izuku that the world of heroes was no place for him.

Right before recess, he called them all together to discuss quirks once more.

That Izuku boy was giving him a look he didn't appreciate.

Then the little idiot tells them he's _still_ going to be a hero? What a joke.

The Bakugo boy takes this as an offence and jumps to correct Midoriya.

The bell dismisses the class before it can escalate any further.

"Alright kids! That's recess, go on and play." Souta speaks cheerily, glaring at the quirkless nuisance as the children rush out of the room, Katsuki following after giving a snarl at Midoriya.

Pity, Souta wanted to see that go down.

The something odd happens.

The room is suddenly suffocating, an aura of _bloodlust _and **murder** fill the air in a way Souta didn't think was possible.

_'There's nothing more terrifying than this'_, Souta thinks.

Then Midoriya meets his eyes and _begins to **smile**._

It's terrifying and it turns his blood into ice as Souta freezes solid, eyes going wide.

The way Midoriya's lips curl upwards, slow as honey, to show off sharp canines.

Mismatched blue and green eyes colder than chips of ice and looking more toxic than radioactive acid.

His smile is sharper than shards of broken glass, lips razor blade thin as they're pulled taunt.

_'If you could even call it a smile'_ Souta thinks distantly, in the back of his mind.

Midoriya's eyes are dark with something that makes Souta's hair stand on end and has his legs trembling as they strain to keep him standing.

The shadows in the room seem to flex and flicker, curling softly at Midoriya's ankles like an affectionate cat.

Souta's breath catches in his throat, heartbeat hummingbird in his chest and goosebumps raising on his skin.

The kid looks deranged, teeth bared in what was more snarl than smile, a little too many teeth showing for it to be polite.

Midoriya's steely eyes are glinting with something darker than Souta wants to place, he looks **feral** and _wild_ and insane.

His eyes seem to glow, his teeth are a little too sharp, his smile a tad too wide, there's no way this-this **_thing _**is human.

Then Midoriya _speaks._

"I'll see you back in class Sensei." Midoriya's tone is icily chipper and it sets him on edge, senses screaming _danger danger**dangerdangerdanger.**_

It's as unsettling as his expression and Souta flinches, stepping back slightly.

Souta watches something fill those dual colored eyes but his heartbeat is a little too loud in his ears for him to think straight.

The child turns on his heel and walks out the door, bone-chilling smile still in place as he leaves the classroom, quiet as death.

The shadows settle as the door clicks closed, no longer angry but no less intimidating than before, the air buzzing with something unknown.

Souta's legs give out as he whimpers quietly, clutching his desk with white knuckles as he takes shaky breaths to try and calm himself.

_(The shadows that seemed to favor Midoriya were forgotten in the fear that had struck Souta and sent his heart thumping harshly against his ribs)_

Whatever that was Souta never wants to see it again because for just a second, just barely a millisecond, he genuinely thought that c̶h̶i̶l̶d̶ **demon** was going to kill him.

It takes nearly all of recess for Souta to catch his breath and calm down enough to continue his day, his hands still shake a little and his heart stutters in his chest along with his breath every time his eyes meet Midoriya's.

Later that day, after school is over and Souta gets home, he realizes what had filled Midoriya's eyes before he left.

It was _smug_ **_satisfaction._**

Souta throws up when he gets home and it takes his wife 3 hours to convince him to keep teaching at that school because he won't tell her what happened.

_(Later on in life, maybe Tatsuya _Souta_ will see Midoriya Izuku on the TV as a hero in training at UA, maybe that day in the classroom all those years ago will come to mind and maybe Souta will question what it means to be a hero. But that's too many variables and Souta is just a footnote in this story so I suppose we'll never know, not truly.)_

* * *

**(Well, that's all for this chapter, hits you right in the feels and Anastasia has some problems but we already knew that. Alas, making characters suffer is the job of the author and Izuku's done a fine job of terrorizing the characters so far. The next chapter is something I'm excited for! I hope you enjoyed it, if you find any grammar or spelling errors feel free to point them out! See you in the next chapter!**

**\- Author Mao)**


	6. Chapter 5: Quirks

**(Hello! Back with another chapter! This chapter contains some (not really) disturbing images, but I'm paranoid by nature so I'm putting a warning anyway. This chapter has also been edited several times, so if some words are missing or anything like that please point them out! Thank you!)**

_'Thoughts'_

**{Special Actions}**

**_~Memories~_**

Anastasia gets older, most definitely has a quirk, talks to the demons in the shadows, becomes royalty (?), and snuggles with a (_maybe_) demon.

* * *

After the shit-show that was the aftermath of my doctor's visit, I decided to put my plan in motion.

First order of business, I bought writing supplies and notebooks and wrote down everything I knew about the show in a mix of Russian and English.

Well, _I_ didn't buy them, mom did...

_Semantics._

I then made sure to write down how my current life diverges from canon and theories for it.

In my other notebooks, I began my hero analysis and quirk analysis.

My mother seemed worried for a little bit but I assured her I was fine, she didn't believe me until she heard my _d̶e̶m̶o̶n̶i̶c̶_ delighted cackle whilst writing.

In a black notebook with silver crows on it, I wrote down fighting tactics, styles, and other things related that I remembered from my past life. I left the first half nearly blank, writing down what little information I had on my possible quirk.

Sadly, I had to wait until I was at least five years old to begin training.

I mean, that was only under legal means and the abandoned house I used for training, caution tape and warning signs be damned, will never look quite the same.

_But that's nobody's business._

The real fun happened on my eagerly anticipated 5th birthday.

I was excited to finally be able to _l̶e̶g̶a̶l̶l̶y̶ _start my training regimen and get into dance and all that.

**xXx**

It all began on my fifth birthday, with pastel streamers and a dark chocolate cake with buttercream flowers on it because _fuck fragile masculinity._

Anyway, all in all it was a pretty decent day, I ate cake and got coloring books, new clothes, and some hero merch.

I think my mom wonders why I hate Endeavor and how this hatred came to fruition but she's never asked about it since the day I went down his merch aisle, glaring at his stupid face.

_If looks could kill, there would be flaming cobras flying out of my eyes and Endickwhore would be 10 feet under_

But that's when things get weird.

_No, I did not start to like that flaming dumpster of a douche canoe_

But odd things seemed to be starting to happen.

_**And happen they fucking did.**_

The shadows had been so silent I had started to think I had imagined it all to begin with.

If not for the dark movement out of the corner of my eyes sometimes, and phantom hands brushing my own as soft voices croon undecipherable whispers into my ears.

It was after I had taken a bath, hair frizzy and clothes sticking uncomfortably to my slightly damp skin, when it happened.

I can only thank what little luck I have that it hadn't happened while I was in the bath, it would've been embarrassing for that to happen when I was buck ass naked and sopping wet.

**xXx**

I finished putting on my pajamas, hair still slightly wet and sticking to my head a little.

My skin was dewy and warm and sleep tugged at my content mind making me yawn.

I shook my head a little and blearily made my way over to the mirror so I could do my nightly routine and finally succumb to the exhaustion pulling at my skin.

The steam from my bath had fogged the mirror, so I grabbed a towel and swiped it across the surface to clear it so I could start brushing my teeth.

I set the towel down and turn back to the mirror only to have all sleepiness yanked from my form, wide awake at the sight that greeted me.

In the mirror stood a nightmare fuel version of myself, I barely contained my knee-jerk reaction to punch it in the face, old habits don't truly die I guess.

_'Just like me'_ I snort at my joke before focusing back on the mirror. _'Never take your eyes off a new variable, you don't know what they're capable of... Well shit dad, I done fucked that one up, shame you're too dead to berate me for it you old bastard'_

_'Focus!' _I shove my thoughts aside and look at the mirror, taking in the sight of whatever creature is in it.

It's eyes were inky black, sclera and all, with little wisps of shadows curling around the edges of it's eyes, shifting it's upper lashes and brushing it's temples.

With milky pale skin and hands looking like they were dipped in ink, pitch black winding up it's wrists and fingers curled into gnarled, razor-sharp claws several inches longer than my own fingers.

The shadows in the mirror clung to it's frame, smoky tendrils curling fondly around inky wrists and a slim neck, sliding over it's shoulders like a cloak and draping down like a waterfall of thick ebony smoke.

Over it's head was a crown of shadows, curling into it's hair with sharp edges like broken glass, gems shining obsidian and garnet in shifting phantom lights.

I felt a startled yell get stuck in my throat as I stared bug-eyed at the mirror.

_**ℍ𝕖 𝕝𝕠𝕠𝕜𝕤 𝕝𝕚𝕜𝕖 𝕒 𝕜𝕚𝕟𝕘, 𝕕𝕣𝕒𝕡𝕖𝕕 𝕚𝕟 𝕤𝕙𝕒𝕕𝕠𝕨𝕤 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕤𝕚𝕟𝕤, 𝕒𝕕𝕠𝕣𝕟𝕖𝕕 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕤𝕙𝕒𝕣𝕡 𝕥𝕙𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕥𝕤 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕦𝕟𝕤𝕡𝕠𝕜𝕖𝕟 𝕤𝕖𝕔𝕣𝕖𝕥𝕤, 𝕤𝕙𝕣𝕠𝕦𝕕𝕖𝕕 𝕚𝕟 𝕕𝕒𝕣𝕜𝕟𝕖𝕤𝕤 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕒𝕣𝕞𝕖𝕕 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕒 𝕤𝕙𝕒𝕣𝕡 𝕥𝕠𝕟𝕘𝕦𝕖 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕟 𝕤𝕙𝕒𝕣𝕡𝕖𝕣 𝕔𝕝𝕒𝕨𝕤.**_

"What?" I managed to croak after what felt like minutes of staring.

The creature's mouth moved in tandem with mine, but no noise left it's blood tinted lips.

H̶e̶ ̶h̶a̶s̶ ̶r̶i̶s̶e̶n̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶h̶e̶ ̶b̶o̶w̶s̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶n̶o̶ ̶o̶n̶e̶.̶

I blink and slowly raise a hand to my face, the mirror follows my movements.

I turn my attention to my hand, which matches the being's own hand, deadly claws gleaming onyx in the light of the bathroom.

**_L̸̡͈̺͎̼̍́̿̚͡͞_**_**o̟̮͇̼ͧͥ̾̏n̼̯̝̠͐ͧ͆̓g̰̙̳̥͗͆͋͌ ̯̯͔̠̒͋ͫ̈́l͖͈̙̫͗̍̿͛i̎ͩ̚v̷̵̰̠̪͈ͭͧ̾̄͞͝e̬̪̲̩ͮ̅ͧ͗ ̹͉͙͗͂̾͛ͅt̳̰͚̲ͤͣ̔ͨh̥̠̭͖̾̒ͬͬe̼͍͈̩ͯ͂̽̒ ̣̲͎͉́ͦ̑̿ k̟͓̩̪ͦͣ̃́i̼̺͔̳ͭ͐̒̏n͚̪͎̗̓̉ͭ̎g̗͈̜͚ͮ̏ͤͧ.̞̼͖͕ͭ͗͋̍**_

This time the panicked yell in my throat managed to escape, and the _noise_ that ripped itself from my throat was downright _**ungodly.**_

**xXx**

My panicked scream sound like glass grinding together and thunder rolling, like loud TV static and metal scraping porcelain.

The mirror cracks and the lights flicker as my scream echoes in disjointed voices of languages that don't exist, shrill sounds overlapping deep growls and a sound similar to metal shrieking as it tore.

The shadows **roar** with me, howling and snarling in discordant, warped voices as they strike out and pierce the tile on the floor and walls.

The mirror shatters, glass falling onto my feet as a stray shadow tendril slams the door shut with enough force to crack the frame.

I hear someone shouting in the distance but the shadows are too loud for me to think clearly as their whispers resound in my head like a cacophony of pounding drums.

The doorknob rattles as the door shakes in it's frame, I think mom is trying to get into the bathroom.

"IZUKU!" Mom screamed, drowned out by my wails and the shadows screeches.

My mother finally shoved the door open just as I managed to snap my mouth closed, razor sharp teeth clacking together like magnets in my haste to stop the _unholy wailing._

The lights fizzled back in as the shadows settled, the glass from the mirror left little cuts on my tiny feet as the shards shined on the floor.

I blink down at the broken mirror, my reflection stares back at me with panicked mismatched eyes and hair slightly damp, no shadows or inky claws in sight.

_**T̨̳̭̙̫̓̃̿̒͡͞͡hě̢̛̘͇͈̤̿̔̈͢͡ķ̛͚̖̺͍ͧͧ̄̒͢͞in͖̼̰ͮ͋̉̚ͅg̷̸̨̺̥͔͖̒ͭ̐ͣ͜ h̸̾̉̒̔͜͟͏̫͍̳͔a̿s̷̢͈̩͙̥ͧ͛́̓͜͞ b̧̛̤͈͕̭ͧ͋̽̊̕͡e̵̻̺̱̣̐̏͌ͭ͜͠͞ė̸̛̘͓̣̲̒ͣ̓͜͡n̗̟̙̄͛̌ͤͅ ̮͚̠͇̀̃͊ͧ ḉͨ͒̽͝͝҉̮͇͕̹r̸̡̢̮̻̪͓͒̎ͩͫ͜o̸̡̤̭͈̫ͯͥ̐̔́͞w̛̛̉̔̉̒̀҉̝̲̲̫ne̢̟̥̯̮ͫ̑̊̊́̕̕d̞͉̰͚ͮ͋͂͗.**_

I let out a slow shaky breath as mom carefully walks over, panicked rambling full of questions for my wellbeing.

"Oh Izuku! Are you alright? What was that noise? What happened to the mirror and the door? Just stay there while I move the glass, okay?" Mom speaks frantically, eyes wild as she moves the glass shards into the trash with her quirk.

"Mom?" I whisper, voice coarse and rough, my mind was whirling and my fingers tingled as my head is bombarded with strange words and hellish noises.

"Yes baby? Are you okay? What happened sweetheart?" Mom frets, voice soft as she pauses in her cleaning of the floor.

"I think I have a quirk." I say slowly as I turn to her with wide eyes, something with a texture akin to ink slithers down the back of my neck to settle on my spine, right in-between my shoulder blades.

"What?" Mom asks, blinking owlishly at me.

The edges of my vision are going dark and blurry and I feel weak on my feet, a cool hand presses gently to my temples and the pressure in my mind lets up.

"That noise, the mirror, the door, the shadows, that was all me. I... I think it's my quirk. It came in late I think." My voice sounds distant, like I was hearing the echo of it at the end of a cave.

"Izuku, are you sure?" Mom asks, eyes gentle and voice quiet.

"Yeah. Also, I'm gonna pass out now." I tell her, seeing her eyes widen as the world goes dark and I feel my body begin to fall, mom's words drowned out and muffled.

_'I hope I don't die from blood loss after I hit the glass'_ I thought, belatedly in the back of my mind, as I finally fell into the depths of unconsciousness.

**xXx**

I woke up to the sound of beeping, steady and monotone, it was _very _annoying.

The blankets on my body were thin and scratchy and the smell of medicine made my nose crinkle a little.

I crack an eye open only to immediately shut it at the sudden onslaught of light on my poor corneas.

"Who turned on the sun?" I groan, voice rough from sleep.

"Izuku!" I hear a voice exclaim from my left. "You're awake! Here honey, let me turn down the lights a little."

Mom rushes over after some shuffling to hug me gently, sniffling as tears wet my shirt.

"Mom?" I ask, slipping my eyes open to see the room is dimmer than before. "Why are we at the hospital?"

"Well sweetie..." Mom trailed off, wringing her hands and glancing at me nervously. "Your quirk came in, do you remember that?"

"Yeah, I remember that, but why-" I cut myself off mid-turn to face her as I realize there's slight pressure on my head. "Did I get injured?"

"You did get hurt Izukkun, when you fainted you hit the glass and it sliced your head open and cut your face a little. I-I was so worried!" Mom sobs softly, curling back around me.

I hug her back gently as I contemplate the possibilities of me getting a scar from this.

_'That would be pretty dope, good conversation starter, however it's highly unlikely with my healing'_

A woman with peach pink hair and pale yellow eyes wearing a lab coat walked in.

Mom startles and gives her a shy smile before sitting down in the chair next to my bed, holding my hand in a firm grip.

"Oh, it's good to see you're awake Midoriya-kun. You seem to have woken up remarkably quick." The woman comments, smiling at me gently.

"Yeah, I've got a mutation that does that." I say in lieu of an explanation.

"Alright, now you may have some light scarring on your face from the glass. Your quirk seems to have slowed down your mutation during it's manifestation but it's up to normal speed now. That does happen with non-quirk related mutations." The doctor spoke, I nodded along with her words.

_'Well I stand fucking corrected... Irony is a cruel bitch indeed' _

"Now then, I'll take your vitals to make sure everything is okay and we can take of the bandages to assess the damage. If it's healed or mostly healed we'll let you go but if the wound is still in danger of re-opening we may have to keep you for a little longer." The peach-haired woman smiles at me and my mom lets out a long breathe before nodding.

**xXx**

After we got checked out of the hospital and mom fussed over me on our way home, turns out my quirk enhanced my 'mutation' and I'm perfectly healthy.

We haven't registered my quirk yet, mostly because it just manifested but also because _I have no fucking clue what the hell it does _aside from changing my appearance and wrecking shit.

Also, I **do **have a scar on my face, and only on my face because the back of my head only got fucking impaled but _**no** _I only got a scar on the front of my face because _fuck logic right?_

A small white line on my cheekbone, just below my left eye, it's thin and barely visible.

Turns out when I fell on the glass, my head tilted and mom wasn't able to fully catch me before I basically got skewered by our bathroom mirror.

When it was announced that I had a scar, a phantom hand brushed it gently and a low voice crooned out an apology.

_'Good to know they feel remorse then'_

When we got home mom made katsudon for dinner.

**xXx**

Afterwards, I was woken up in the dead of night by a creature climbing out of the shadows.

I blink at it, slightly alarmed, from underneath my covers as it unfurls and stretches in the dim shine of my nightlight.

The creature is thin and lanky, shadowy limbs awkward and face smooth except for a pair of red glowing eyes.

It wasn't very tall, only 2 or 3 feet, with double-jointed cat-like legs and a long, fluffy looking tail that reminds me of a snow leopard.

The little thing blinks at me, an extra garnet eye opening on it's forehead, wisps of shadows curling backwards on it's head like dragon horns.

"Um..." I look around the room before sitting up and blinking at the shadow creature.

The creature chitters at me curiously, crawling forward on it's tiny clawed hands to settle next to my knee on top of the covers.

"_W̜̟̲ͭ̾͐̚ͅa̳͎̯͆ͩ̒̚ͅȑ̘̻̭̬̄ͤ͐m̳̹̰̯͌̔̃̊?_͔͉̲͙̐̾̀̃" The creature chirps, voice like static and waves crashing.

"Yeah, I'm pretty warm I guess." I say, feeling slightly perturbed and confused. "Are... Are you cold?"

The little shadow-pixie tilts it head before giving me a tiny nod.

I sigh and grab an extra blanket from my bed, moving it over myself as the creature watches with wonder-filled eyes.

"Do you wanna be warm?" I ask, mind tired and all sense of logic thrown out the window as sleep tugs at me as I lift the covers by my chest in invitation.

_'If I get killed in my sleep by this thing at least I can go out well-rested' _I thought with an inward snort.

The shadow critter chirps at me before diving underneath the covers and curling up against my chest.

It's skin is cool, like glass, and it's body feels like it hidden underneath a thick layer of smoke but I guess that would be an accurate observation.

I tuck us both in and I drift off to the sound of the thing purring against my chest, horns poking my jaw and a cold, small nose pressed against my throat. It's tiny body practically vibrating from the force, it's tail coiled around the arm I had curled around it's form to make sure it didn't fall off the bed.

**xXx**

I woke up alone, but the second blanket overtop my comforter and the scrunched up front of my sleep-shirt were evidence I hadn't hallucinated.

The shadows rumble out soft thanks and croon out compliments to me as I brush my teeth so I'm calling it a win.

* * *

**(I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Feel free to leave a comment, I love reading them! Thanks for reading, see you in the next chapter!)**


	7. Chapter 6:Night Strolls & Cinnamon Rolls

**(It's ya gorl, back at it again with the white vans (_god that makes me feel so old_). Anyway, I got another chapter! Also, if you haven't figured it out yet, my update schedule is usually every 6 days but if I'm busy or something comes up it may take longer! This chapter is kind of long, I got a little bit carried away... Whoops. Anyway, on to the chapter!)**

_'Thoughts'_

**{Special Actions}**

**_~Memories~_**

Anastasia encounters several cinnamon rolls, meets (__and possibly mentally scars__) a purple child, fights a guy with greasy hair, almost dies (__again__), meets a hobo, _**_and _**_makes an adorable friend.

* * *

After starting mixed martial arts training, I had taken a liking to midnight strolls.

Bad idea, I know, but my aesthetic is making bad decisions and covering them up with even worse decisions.

_I̶t̶'̶s̶ ̶n̶o̶t̶ ̶b̶e̶c̶a̶u̶s̶e̶ ̶I̶ ̶c̶a̶n̶'̶t̶ ̶s̶i̶t̶ ̶i̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶p̶a̶s̶s̶e̶n̶g̶e̶r̶ ̶s̶e̶a̶t̶ ̶w̶i̶t̶h̶o̶u̶t̶ ̶h̶e̶a̶r̶i̶n̶g̶ _̶_**t̶h̶e̶ ̶c̶a̶r̶ ̶c̶r̶u̶m̶p̶l̶e̶ ̶l̶i̶k̶e̶ ̶p̶a̶p̶e̶r̶ ̶a̶s̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶g̶l̶a̶s̶s̶ ̶s̶h̶a̶t̶t̶e̶r̶s̶ ̶a̶n̶**__**d̶̶ **__**E**__**̶v̶a̶n̶ ̶i̶s̶ ****_f̶u̶c̶k̶i̶n̶g̶d̶e̶a̶d̶o̶h̶m̶y̶g̶o̶d̶p̶l̶e̶a̶s̶e̶n̶o̶_ **_

_**n̶ ̶o̶ ̶t̶ ̶ ̶h̶ ̶i̶ ̶m**_

_**Ă̖̠͇̼ͬͮͤ**__**̶̤̺̐̔͑Ṉ̶̠̮ͯ͐ͨ̍̀̒̽̾Y̶͉̱̣̮̐̊T̶͚̩̳̬͆̿͌H̶͖͕̜͈̫̅ͬ̒̐I̶̮̥̼̣̭̊̾ͬͩͫ̔Ň̶̰͙̬̲͉͇̳̿͋BU͈̳̰ͮ̀ͧ̀͐͋ͅT̸͙͙͇̲̘̪͙̐͋ͩ͢͞H̞̝ͤ͆I̶̠̭͈͈̗ͬͧ͌̏ͩM̶̜͎̩̬̿ͭ̄͆̎̽͒**_

No, that isn't the reason, even if I can _still taste the iron on my tongue and see Evan's e̶m̶p̶t̶y̶ **green** eyes staring at me from the driver's seat and heisn'tbreathing**godpleaseno.**_

I suck in a sharp breath and let it out slowly, the sound of slow violin music through my headphones flooding my ears and overpowering the sound of the car hitting the building as I turn up the volume.

_'Don't think about it dumbass, just focus on the now, breaking down over the accident isn't gonna bring him back. Just breathe'_

I blink at the sidewalk to clear the black dots from my vision as I continue my trek home, the city shining brightly in the dying light, the sky painted a colorful ombre that had my hands itching to take a picture.

_'At least the sunset is kind of pretty, now if only the sun would stop trying to** fucking blind me** whenever I glance between buildings'_

The shadows on the street brush lovingly against my knuckles, locking a phantom pinky with mine to help ground me as I let them guide me away from any danger they find lurking about.

When I got home mom fretted over me before we had curry for dinner, I told mom about my adventures in my boxing and kickboxing classes as she listened with a soft smile that made my chest feel warm.

_**xXx**_

I had gotten used to my apparent quirkless status, the shadows didn't do much aside from snide, snarky, or fond comments and comforting or encouraging phantom hands.

And, of course, cuddly shadow demons that show up at **_ass o'clock in the morning._ **

That, or they nestle into my hair or drape over my shoulders and curl around my biceps so they can gaze judgmentally at everyone, which is honestly a _mood._

Sometimes they even follow me around and spit out insults at people or croon out compliments and wax poetic about pretty people, like I don't already do that anyway.

_Bi awakening in 5th grade be damned, I guess that followed me through the afterlife as well_

_**...**_

_Can't decide if that's a good thing or a bad thing because while it's helping me get a sense of normality it's also just distracting me at every turn because **why the fuck is everyone in this universe so goddamn attractive!?**_

Anyway, back on topic, damn my ADHD.

Like honestly, these guys are stealing all my good insults and I'm torn between offended, proud, and baffled because _why the fuck are they listening to my internal roasts?_

I still had yet to find more aspects of my quirk but to be fair it's only been a couple of months, and my life is hectic with all the new lessons.

_'I swear my new gymnastics teacher has it out for me, which might be because I told her she was being a bitch. But in my defense, she **really was** being a bitch.'_

I'm still diagnosed as quirkless because we haven't had the time to find a new quirk doctor, the old one was a dickbag and I didn't like him anyway.

But, once again, God decided to smite me just like a naïve child trying to fight Zeus.

Apparently, God took one look at me being happy and content with my slightly mundane life, and said _'oh child, that is not for you'_.

This whole 'main protagonist' shit _really _doesn't play around.

Of course, all the interesting shit happens on my walk home, in the dark, on a fucking Saturday night because why fucking not.

Because _why not try to fucking kill me **again, **on the same weekday I died?_

It's not even irony at this point, it's just straight up **bullshit.**

And that's why I'm guarding a terrified purple child, who looks like he hasn't slept since he was in the womb, as I try to avoid getting either getting my ass kicked or getting run through with a blade.

All while being yelled at by his would-be murderer as he cradled his new injuries and scrambles to get the upper hand.

And _that's_ how I met my future homeroom teacher _**and **_got a new friend.

**...**

_'How the hell did all of this happen anyway?'_

Well, let's think back on these past couple of weeks and find out.

**xXx**

It all started when I finally convinced mom to sign me up for a tiny plethora of lessons.

We had found a mixed martial arts dojo not too far from home, as well as a boxing and kickboxing gym connected to a dance studio 20 minutes from my school.

The dance studio was also neighboring a place that gave gymnastic lessons, however I decided it was worth it. Well, that or it doubled as a gymnastics studio...

I didn't bother to read much into it after I met the _absolute twat_ that was going to be my gymnastics teacher.

Its _always_ the quiet ones, I swear.

I would've gone looking for another gymnastics studio if I was any lesser man but, unfortunately for Hirayama-sensei, I am not a lesser man so she's stuck with my snarky little ass until further notice.

If only she wasn't such a bitter bitch, then maybe I would make her life a little bit easier by not being such a little shit.

Alas.

Now, it would be overkill on my poor mother if she had to pay for all of this herself, but luckily whoever the hell my father is, sends in checks every month along with the child support.

So I'm perfectly willing to spend his money on things for the sole reason of being the petty bastard I know I am.

Now, unlike my wank rag of a gymnastics instructor, my boxing and kickboxing teacher is an absolute fucking gem.

Sakuko-sensei is a gift from God, nobody can convince me otherwise, and I will maim anyone who makes him even feel even a little bit sad.

He is sunshine incarnate and **no**, _you may **not** fight me on it_, I know I'm right.

Sakuko-sensei is a very tall man, over 6 feet, with pastel yellow hair, bright orange eyes, and dimples. He's pale as hell and oddly slender for his profession.

But don't be fooled by his leanness, and just softness in general, I've seen him put a man nearly 3 times his size on his ass in under a minute.

His quirk is called Flashlight and it allows him to make his skin light up like, well, a flashlight for several minutes at a time. Sakuko-sensei is a cheery man, a bright personality to match his equally as bright quirk, he's optimistic in a way that somehow isn't annoying to my own pessimistic personality.

Despite this, he's soft-spoken and quiet in every sense of the word, with his low but gentle voice and his nearly silent footsteps.

He wears muted colors and soft looking sweaters and floral pattern jeans and he's the biggest cinnamon roll I've ever met. He's also married, I have yet to find out who the lucky spouse is but I have no doubt in my mind that they must be a fucking fantastic person considering they're married to Sakuko-sensei.

_'Honestly he's just a soft tol boi, with his paw print sweaters and pastel jeans and I just really want to scoop him up and put him in my pocket for safekeeping okay?'_

Speaking of teachers, despite Hirayama-sensei being a cunt, her quirk is actually pretty fucking cool.

She has golden eyes with slit pupils and a forked black tongue, black scales smattered over her cheekbones and curving around her eyes. Her hair is bright red, I'm 97% sure it's dyed, and she's got that makes her skin remind me of caramel which is ironic considering the fact that she's so fucking salty.

Her quirk is called Cobra, and it basically allows her to turn into a naga and literally squeeze the life out of someone.

I await the day she just says _'fuck it'_ and crushes me with her tail like an empty soda can.

Thankfully she hasn't tried to strangle me... _Yet._

**xXx**

Turns out, on my walk home from Sakuko-sensei's lessons, there is a small shelter for rescued animals.

They have all types of animals, but mostly, a large plethora of cats.

I found this out upon walking in and I've never been happier to find a building before in my entire life.

The lady behind the desk is sweet, with her chocolate skin, purple tipped dreadlocks, and amber eyes.

Her name is Clara but she lets me call her Clare-bear, I think she's around 30 but her skin care regime could just be really fucking effective, so who knows.

She calls me 'sugar' and I've only known her for a day and a half but if anything happened to her I would kill everyone in this room and then myself.

Clara smells like honey and brown sugar and she makes knitted sweaters on her days off.

I don't know her quirk, but she lets me see the cats and play with the kittens whenever she can sneak me in.

She also gives me candy every time I walk into the shelter, so she's pretty awesome in my book.

Mom made her cookies for me to bring in when I told her about Clara.

Clara loved them and gave me one of the best hugs I've ever had in my life.

_'Maybe that's her quirk? Just being a sweetheart in general? Do quirks like that exist?'_

Anyway, the rescue shelter is awesome and I've heard word that sometimes a kid my age comes in to see the cats.

I have yet to meet him but Clara told me he looked kind of sad, and he always comes in at night just before closing which is dangerous because there's been some creepy people handing around after dark.

So it's now my mission to befriend him and possibly kidnap him whenever I get the chance.

Apparently he has purple hair, which is fucking odd, but then again who am I to judge?

Something about his description gave me a nagging feeling that I am now prone to pay attention to.

_Eh, I'll come back to that later._

**xXx**

**_I very much should not have gone back on that later, maybe I wouldn't be in this fucking mess if I didn't procrastinate so goddamn much._**

But as they say, hindsight is a bitch.

It happened on a night stroll I decided to take, dropping by the shelter before closing in the hopes I might catch a glimpse of this kid with the purple hair.

Because _of fucking course it did, _shit always happens when I try to be a good person and I always wind up being the bad guy in the situation.

_But I'll be damned if that makes me stop being a snoopy bitch with good intentions._

**xXx**

I strolled lazily to the shelter, casually glancing around as the shadows whisper to me about which alleys to avoid and such.

Just as I near the shelter the shadows _yell._

**_"̹̘̜͇̊̽̃͛D̘̖͕͔ͭ̀̔̑a͈̼̅̃ṅ̪̩ͥ_**_**ǵ͕͇̟̀͛ͨͅé̬̝͓͍͋̽̑r̰̥̭ͭ͌ͩ̽ͅ****!̹͇̪̥̊ͬͯ͊** G̳͈̺̬ͨͧͭ͒o h̫̼̘͖͆̽ͭ̓ẹ̠̖̱ͦ͗́̃lp!̠͉̙̉͗͋ͩͅ **H̡̤̬̲̬ͬ͒̔́́̚̕ụ̸̵̧̤̬̞̃̅̀ͯ͝rŗ̵͔͇̘̠̊̒̐ͦ͢͡y̧ͮ̓̏ͦ̕҉҉͈̬̮̱!̜͈̩̹ͯ̃̍͑"͍͕̮̘͑ͥͮ̚ **_The shadows insist loudly, voices shrill and anxious.

"Son of a bitch!" I whisper yell, hands clapping over my ears at the sheer volume of the screech. "Alright, alright, I'm fucking going!"

I break into a quiet run, shadows softening my steps to hide my approach as they guide me to an alley next to the shelter.

Inside the alley I hear small sniffles and the sound of a man snarling angrily.

I turn into the alley sharply, eyes taking in the sight before me as I pause in the mouth of the alley for a second.

A small kid my age with purple hair and dirty clothes was curled up and shying away from a much larger man. The man has greasy brown hair and glowing red eyes, he's loudly berating the kid.

"You little shit, how dare you try and control me you fucking bitch!" Greasy-hair bellows, it's a miracle that nobody has come over here considering his volume.

The purple child whimpers and curls into an even tighter ball and that snaps me out of my trance.

"Hey you rat-faced bastard! The fuck are you doing!?" I snap loudly to try and draw attention to us, before speeding up as I charge towards him.

Both him and the child turn towards me, the kid's eyes are indigo and wide with shock. I nearly trip upon seeing the kid's face because _**I fucking recognize those eyebags.**_

_'Holy shit, that's Shinsou Hitoshi, that kid with the mind control quirk. Is this shit canon? What in the absolute blue blazing fuck, there is **no fucking way** this is canon'_

In contrast, the man's eyes are blazing with fury and when he turned towards me I could see metal glinting in the light.

_'Well fuck me sideways, he's got a fucking knife!'_

Greasy-hair growls and moves to stab me, so I quickly change my trajectory to avoid getting impaled.

I kick off the dumpster and twist sharply, turning my tackle into a reverse roundhouse kick and planting the heel of my sneaker into his jaw.

The man's jaw crunches _beautifully_ as it (hopefully) breaks, his head snapping to the side as I swing my other foot out and kick the knife out of his hands.

I land in a crouch as the man reels backward, spewing out curses and cradling his jaw.

I bounce upward taking a step forward and, using my tiny stature to my advantage, deal a hard roundhouse kick the side of the man's knee.

He crumples like deadweight and lets out a cry as I back up quickly to stand in front of _Shinsou Hitoshi_ and let my mind whirl a little.

"You little bastard!" The man spits at me, words slurred and rage-filled voice under currented with pain. The man brings up a hand that glows a sickly red and I hear a clatter to my left.

_**"̷̧͍̼͙̩̀́̊̅́͘M̨̧ͮͣ̒̅҉̼͎̲͓́**_**_O̅͜҉̱V̅̈́͌͏̴̡̟Ě̩ͫͬ̕!̴̱ͫͦ̀ͅ"_ **The shadows command, phantom hands tugging me down as some of them screech at the man in palpable fury.

I barely manage to duck out of the way as the knife, glowing a pale ruby in the dim alley, zips past my head and slams to a stop in the air a couple feet away.

_'Fuck, my dumbass forgot about the knife!'_

I curse underneath my breath before I take off my backpack and set it behind me.

"Hold this." I throw the words over my shoulder as I twist out of the way of the knife again, the blade grazes the dumpster and makes a noise that hurts my ears.

"I'll fucking kill you!" The man all but screeches at me, face twisted in fury in a way that reminds me of an opossum.

The shadows howl at him, snarling angrily and hissing out insults and threats.

"Bring it _сука.**¹**__" _I sneer at the man, teeth bared and eyes narrowed as I walk sideways and put my back to the dead-end of the alley.

I glance down quickly and, upon seeing what I had been looking for, quirk my lips into a small smirk.

The man uses my moment of distraction to fling the knife at me again.

_'Gotcha bitch'_

The knife flies at me a third time but I was prepared, I turn sharply and grab the handle of the knife with my left hand as I kick the rock I had placed myself next to towards the man.

Staticky crows of triumph fill my ears as the shadows roar with my victory.

Several things happen at once: I catch the knife, the rock nails the man in the head, the man's quirk stops working, white cloth flies down from above to wrap around the man, a hero drops down behind the man with white cloth around his neck and held in his hands.

"Trying to kill kids at this hour? You guys never stop do you?" The new entity says, voice tired and tinged with quiet fury.

My eyes widen in recognition as the golden goggles on _Eraser Head's_ face look down at the man as he tightens his capture weapon.

My hand drops to my side and the knife clatters to the ground in my surprise, Shinsou looks over the top of my backpack to stare at Eraser Head with eyes full of awe and surprise.

"_By the gods_, you're Eraser Head." I breathe out, looking up at him with startled eyes.

Eraser Head jumps a little, turning to look at me as the criminal squirms in his cloth prison.

"Yes, I am. Are you alright? I apologize for not come sooner." Eraser Head's voice gives nothing away. I nod and glance at Shinsou to check for injuries.

"I'm good, I think he has some injuries but I'm not sure and don't apologize, I'm just glad someone showed up before I got skewered." I respond before turning and walking towards Shinsou as the adrenaline in my system begins to fade.

Eraser Head nods and knocks out the man in one fluid movement as I reach the shaking Shinsou.

"Are you okay? Wait, stupid question, of course you're not okay you literally almost got murdered. Are you injured or anything?" I ask him softly, eyes scanning him for injuries.

_**"͈̓̾͆̍D̳̼͓̮ͭo͓̳̰ͯ ǹ̹͔̖ot̘̀ͦͯ w̥̾o͖͚̭͆̓ͩ͋r͍̠͗r̝̃̐y͓ͨ,͚̬ͮ͐ͫͅ l̪̍̏i̦̤ͨ̎ͫ͊t̘̩̫ͦ́̅t̖̽͆̿ͯl͖̙̪͕͗ͦͦͮe̙̠͊ͤ̄ p̙̺͇̤̉͐ͦ̉u̩̹͕̜ͦ̊̃̒ŕ̙͚͕̿̑p̞͉̰̓͑͂l͉͈͈̙̾ͦͫe̼͑ͥ k̬̮̒ͨ̚i̹͇̗ͣț͈̭͊ṯ̠̇͗̑ẻ͙n̗ͥ̓͑ i̤ͮ͌s̜̳̘ͯ u̫̞̍n̼̪ḭ͇̉n̤ͦj͍ͮ̎͊̚u̺͖̭͗ͅr̖̙̩̤͛e͙̳̣ͦ̽̊ͤd̳̺̯͍̊.̮̹͕ͨ̒̉"̝͎̞͗͂**_ The shadows assure me, and I feel the tension drain from my shoulders at the confirmation.

Shinsou turns to me with teary eyes, blinking up at me before swallowing and clearing his throat.

"I-I'm okay, he didn't pull out the knife until before you got here. Thanks for saving me..." Shinsou trails off at my name, voice shaky and soft as he trembles slightly.

"I'm Midoriya Izuku, it's no problem." I tell him, flashing a quick smile. "Thanks for guarding my bag for me."

"Oh! I'm Shinsou Hitoshi and I didn't really guard it all that much." Shinsou says, giving me a shy smile as he ducks his fluffy head. I somehow manage not to choke on the sheer cuteness of the action as I pick up my bag and sling it over my shoulder.

_'This kid is fucking criminally adorable, lord help me I wanna just pet him and wrap him up in fluffy blankets for the next 10 years'_

"Um... Wanna be friends?" I blurt out.

The shadows cackle loudly at my sudden outburst, disjointed laughter mocking in a way that makes my eye twitch.

"What?" Shinsou asks, dumbfounded.

I rub the back of my neck as it flushes and my ears start to turn pink in embarrassment.

The shadows laugh even harder and I fight the urge to glare at them.

"I mean, I kind of just saved you and you're really adorable and you remind me of a cat and-" I cut myself off before I can continue my word vomit, Shinsou's cheeks are turning pinker by the minute and I'm sure my ears are red as hell. "So, want to hang out sometime?" I finish awkwardly, offering a hand to help him up.

_'Real fucking smooth dumbass, way to go you dingus'_

"S-Sure!" Shinsou's voice cracks and he flushes a shade of red that makes my fingers twitch with the need to mix paints and find the exact color. Shinsou grabs my hand and lets me pull him up. "That sounds nice."

_'His hands are so soft and small and they fit mine really nicely and wow that sounds creepy as fuck'_

Someone clears their throat behind me and we both whip around to see Eraser Head looking at us with a smug grin.

_'Shit I forgot he was there'_

The criminal is cuffed and slumped on the ground next to him, and I can't see Eraser Head's eyes but I _know_ they're just as irritating as his stupid grin.

"Now that you're done flirting, as adorable as it is, I have to drop this guy off at the police station. Why don't you two come with me and your parents can come pick you up." Eraser Head's amused tone has the back of my neck flushing hotly.

"That's a good idea." I mumble, cheeks blazing when my voice cracks slightly.

**xXx**

Eraser Head left us in the care of the police, disappearing like a ghost after we had been taken care of, the sneaky little bastard.

Mom got to the police station in record time and I introduced her to Shinsou.

Before she had arrived, we had been talking about anything and everything and it turns out he _is_ the kid who visits the shelter at night.

_'As if that wasn't already obvious, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt'_

Mom thought he was adorable and when Shinsou's mother walked in they chatted about a playdate.

During the car on the ride home, I belatedly realized that Shinsou hadn't let go of my hand until my mom had come to pick me up.

The thought has my cheeks turning pink because _good god that's embarrassing as hell but also kind of cute._

The shadows cackle at my expense like the little shits they are.

Mom scolds me and hugs me for several hours when we got home, the shadows sing my praises while mom made a late dinner.

I told mom all about Eraser Head and she told me we could look for merch for him tomorrow.

_'Maybe I'll buy some fake capture tape, even if it's only so I can strangle him with it when I get to UA'_

Mom put my nightly strolls on pause until I'm older, but I couldn't bring myself to care.

When I finally lay down and go to bed, there's writing in purple marker on my calendar for next weekend.

* * *

**(Thanks for reading this chapter! All my readers are so lovely and your comments make my day! If any translations are off or there are any grammar errors feel free to let me know! Also, I know literally nothing about martial art, boxing, kickboxing, or gymnastics so for future reference if anything is incorrect then I apologize! See you in the next update!)**

**Translations:**

**1: *Bitch**


	8. Chapter 7: Water Under The Bridge

**(Hello! Back with another chapter! This chapter does have some disturbing imagery I suppose, so warning for that! Feel free to leave me a comment with your thoughts or any feedback you have! I hope you enjoy this chapter!)**

_'Thoughts'_

**{Special Actions}**

_**~Memories~**_

_"Singing"_

**"Speaking in Russian"***

***(Some words will still be in Russian simply because I like the way it looks. Those words will also be in italics, confusing I know.)**

Anastasia wants to adopt Shinsou (don't we all tbh), saves a walking smoke machine, learns more about her quirk, gets angry, skips school, and talks to her mom

* * *

Playdates with Shinsou became a regular thing after the first playdate a couple of months back.

We often played Heroes and Villains, I was usually All Might and Shinsou was Eraser Head.

The looks the other kids give us when we're both playing heroes makes my hands curl a little bit, claws just underneath the surface.

_The disgust in their eyes pisses me right the fuck off._

Shinsou is honestly just a little ball of snark, he's a little shit with a soft side for cats, and he makes sarcastic comments every time I kick his ass at arcade games.

I love him and I would commit various crimes for him in a heartbeat.

Shinsou is also an orphan, which is... Not really all that surprising now that I think about it.

_The aversion to talking about his parents, avoidance of talking about his home life, longing glances at kids with parents when he thinks I'm not looking, etc._

Turns out the woman with purple hair who picked him up at the police station was actually one of the people who worked at the orphanage.

Her hair was purple because her quirk allows her to change her hair color.

And, to be honest, **I don't like her.**

She has shifty eyes and she sneers whenever Shinsou isn't looking.

The other kids avoid him like the plague and give me odd looks and whisper about me when they think I'm not listening.

My new title, now christened by the little demons, is 'the creepy kid'.

Which is fair, but fucking _rude._

I also suspect this orphanage partakes in quirk discrimination and some form of child abuse.

Sadly, all of my connections are on the other side of the underworld and nobody is going to believe a 5 years old about that kind of shit.

So I'm stuck making snarky comments and spitting out insults when Shinsou is either in another room or not listening.

_The sheer amount of vitriol I've managed to speak at this orphanage is honestly both award worthy and concerning_

I do my best to invite Shinsou away from the orphanage, we take walks in the park or bide time at the shelter or the arcade.

_I am the King of DDR and Shinsou is so fucking bitter about it, you have no idea_

He's hesitant to come over to my house and that makes my anger surge something fierce but I always stamp it down because I don't want to make him uncomfortable.

I am gathering evidence on the orphanage whenever I can, but they're good at hiding it.

_Too good._

But I'm better at hiding things than they are and this place is going down one way or the next.

**xXx**

Katsuki almost died and officially stopped being my friend a couple of days ago.

I almost dies from the sheer anxiety the situation gave me at the time, but I found out a new aspect of my quirk.

_It wasn't fun and I'm starting to think that Canon Izuku was either so desperate for someone to notice him that he'd call his abuser his friend or he's just a fucking idiot._

**_I'm leaning towards both._**

It all happened on a relatively nice day, because of course it did.

**xXx**

It's a beautiful day outside.

_'The birds are singing, the flowers are blooming. On days like this kids like you **should be burning in hell.'**_

I snort at my reference and smother a snicker underneath my hand as I walk into the classroom.

I enter hell, there's children screaming and Katsuki's hands are sparking with little _pop-pop-pops_ and there are things flying through the air.

I close the door.

I sigh, lean my head against the door, regret life choices and steel myself.

I raise my head and open the door again before walking into my hellscape of a classroom.

I calmly maneuver through the chaos and take a seat at my desk.

With practiced ease I get out my notebook and pencil as my classmates continue to run around, screeching like banshees.

The teacher walks in and yells at everyone to shut up.

My classmates settle down and go to their seats, Katsuki finally notices my presence and goes to yell but settles for giving me a glare that would better suit a disgruntled puppy.

_'It's cute how he thinks that's intimidating'_ I think to myself, bemused.

Class starts and I zone out, hand writing down notes on reflex.

The bell rings.

I blink and zone back in from my daydream of kidnapping Shinsou and whisking him off to my house for the unforeseeable future.

"Time for recess!" The teacher announces and everyone rushes outside.

I shove my things into my tiny bag and walk outside only to squint at the brightness.

_'Why is the sun so fucking bright? Can't it just be night all the time so my corneas don't burn like a stereotypical vampire every time I go outside?'_

I contemplate hissing at the sun but am interrupted by Katsuki yelling at me to hurry up.

I give a quick glare at the sun before resigning to my fate and following Katsuki.

His two followers, one with extending fingers and one with wings, Dumb and Dumber respectively, are snickering and praising Katsuki like he's the second-coming of Jesus himself.

_'Can they just shut up? They're only adding to his god complex that I plan to obliterate in the not-so-far future'_

We reach a tiny bridge over a stream and some of the fog in my mind from walking in the forest clears.

I pause for a second to look at the scene before me as the feeling of déjà vu washes over me once again.

_'Wait a second, I know that bridge'_

"C'mon extras! Keep up!" Katsuki throws over his shoulder as we near the middle of the bridge.

_'Now hold on, I'm trying to see the future here you tiny Pomeranian'_

We reach the middle of the bridge and Dumber begins to shove his companion.

Dumb shoves back and what happened next was almost in slow motion.

Dumber stumbles back from the harsh shove, wings flapping to keep from falling, and rams _right into Katsuki._

Katsuki lets out a yell, skidding back from the unexpected shove, and hits the bridge railing.

My eyes widen as this scene finally clicks in my mind.

I dash forward, shoving past the other two boys, hand outstretched as the railing lets out an ominous _crack._

The railing breaks and Katsuki's tumble backwards is now a free fall off the bridge.

I swipe a hand out to grab at a wide-eyed Katsuki and miss by inches.

_'fuck fuck **fuck FUCK'**_

I curse internally and turn on my heel to race off the bridge and reach the river before Katsuki does.

_'In canon he's fine but Shinsou getting nearly murdered was very much **not** canon and with the way Firecracker is angled, his spine is gonna snap like a twig'_

I get over the bend of the bridge and I leap towards the grass, mind going a mile a minute with strategies to stop Katsuki from **snapping in fucking half.**

_'C'mon, let me reach him before he breaks like peanut brittle'_

Suddenly, my rapidly approaching shadow on the grass grows darker and reaches out towards me with short smoky shadow tendrils that weave into the grass.

I don't have time to panic about it as I fall out of my, admittedly decent, landing pose and slam into the shadow blob full force.

Instead of feeling grass break my fall, I'm now diving into a black abyss, floating in a space of nothing but charcoal and the same chilly atmosphere I get from the shadows.

Three of my five main senses are ripped from me, I can't feel or taste anything, and the only sound in my ears is the growing sound of static and wind whistling in the distance.

It feels like I'm suspended in water, clothes floating around me, hair shifting in invisible waves.

_'Oh god oh fuck there's **no way in hell** that fall actually killed me so **what the actual-'**_

I'm torn out of my thoughts by a bright red light to my left, glowing and pulsing like a heartbeat in wherever the hell I am.

It's the same color as Katsuki's eyes and the smell of nitroglycerin emanates from it.

I lunge for it without thinking.

It's like flying through the air without weight, hands closing around a light that emanates warmth like a roman candle in my hand.

I'm tugged through the abyss like a fish on a hook, it's disorienting and feels like all those tunnel scenes in sci-fi movies.

I'm suddenly in the air, looking down at the river, in the exact same position I fell in.

I let out a sharp exhale, sounds and the feeling of wind flooding back to me, hand buzzing with warmth.

I'm at the same height I had been in the air before I had fallen into the ocean of ink that had once been my shadow.

My senses are going haywire and the shadows are muffled, ears popping and at the same time full of cotton.

_'Did the momentum carry me into the air because of the speed and height I hit my shadow? What in the blue blazing fuck-'_

I don't have time to ponder as I twist as fast as I can in the air, colors flying past my eyes and disorienting me for a second.

Sure enough, I'm just below Katsuki, the two boys on the bridge are gaping at me.

Or maybe they're gaping at both of us, who knows?

Time seemingly speeds back up, so it slowing down was most likely my imagination instead of me suddenly transporting into the Matrix.

I scramble to land on my feet, water ankle-deep and freezing my toes.

_'Shit that's cold!'_

I leap back into the air and catch Katsuki bridal style.

He turns to me with surprised garnet eyes and flailing hands.

I steel myself and brace my legs, bending my knees to absorb the impact.

I land back into the water and Katsuki's sudden weight on my arms nearly makes me drop him but I grit my teeth and tighten my hold.

"Gah! Fuck!" I hiss through my teeth, barely developed biceps burning with the unexpected strain.

"What the hell Deku!?" Katsuki yells in my ear, squirming in my hold and hands letting out annoying little crackles.

My mind is quick to turn my fear and panic into anger due to ingrained habits and my _stupid fucking **monkey brain.**_

I blame my father for this trait because _fuck you fear isn't a weakness you dick_, so now I'm just fucking pissed every time I nearly have a panic attack.

Which is exactly what happens, because my heart is no longer pounding with anxiety, my adrenaline is now all due to rage that is quickly growing by the second to fend off my incoming panic attack and _wow I'm really fucking pissed off right now._

I send Katsuki a fierce glare and look him dead in the eye as I drop his ungrateful ass into the river.

"OI!" He roars at me, hands splashing water everywhere as he shoves himself back up. "What the hell was that?"

"Am I gonna get a 'thank you for saving my spine' or are you just going to bitch at me?" I ask blandly, fingers curling slightly to take my mind off the freezing as fuck water.

_'I should probably leave before any more of my anxiety turns into nothing fury' _

Katsuki gapes at me for a second before rage takes over his features and he shoves at my shoulders.

"Are you looking down at me fucking Deku? You're worthless! Stop following me around! You think that now that you have some shitty quirk that you're better than me!? I didn't need you saving me, so stop looking down on me!" He spits out at me, nearly foaming at the mouth.

I stumble back a step, slightly startled at the sudden but genuine rage on his face, before curling my lip over my teeth and snarling.

_'Well fuck that plan, this bitch needs the biggest verbal vibe check I've ever given anyone in my life'_

"Oh I'm sorry _Your Highness_, I didn't realize you'd want a fucking **broken spine** over a bridal carry!" I all but hiss back, hands flying up in exasperation and irritation. "Next time I see you about to sustain a crippling injury _I'll just look the other fucking way!"_

"_**What?**_ Where do you get off _Deku_? That wouldn't have done shit to me, so get off your high horse!" Katsuki's sneers, venom dripping from every word, but I was on a roll. "Stop looking-"

**_"I'm not fucking looking down on you__!_** If you hit that water, your spine would've fucking snapped like a toothpick! Fucking get over yourself already!" I'm nearly yelling now, eyes blazing as I bear down on Katsuki. "I'm your _fucking friend **you cockmunch.**_ I don't wanna see your stubborn little ass in a wheelchair so fucking excuse me if I have to save your sorry ass from time to time! If you keep acting like this then I don't think I want to be your friend anymore."

"What the fuck are you talking about, stupid Deku?" Katsuki's voice is quieter, confusion starting to fog over his expression, but I was on a roll.

"You're acting like a douchebag and I'm done with it! I **refuse** to be treated like this, you either drop your _little fucking attitude_ and get your shit together or don't bother talking to me! I'm _fucking **done**_ with it." I snap, jabbing my pointed nail into his chest with every word of my final sentence.

I'm all but puffing by the end of my rant, anger flooding hot through my veins and fury clouding my mind.

I give Katsuki a withering look that actually makes him wilt a little, but I'm too furious to comment on it.

I whirl on my heel and stomp out of the stream, blood pounding in my ears and shoes squishing wetly against the grass in a way that grates on my nerves.

I growl and all but power-march back to class, shadows coiling around my wrists and rubbing the back of my hand soothingly.

I grab my bag, give the teacher an excuse I can't even remember, and speed over to the nurse's office.

"My shoes are wet, I can't continue school like this. I'm going home." I say, voice clipped and strained.

The nurse says nothing, my thunderous expression keeps whatever comments she has at bay.

She writes me a note as I take off my shoes and socks to dry my feet with a towel.

"I'll have your mom come pick you up." She tells me, handing me a piece of paper, most likely a pass or note of some kind.

"Don't bother, I'm walking home." I respond, shoving my shoes and socks into a plastic bag and into my backpack.

"Wait-" I tune her out as I sling my bag over my shoulders and storm out of her office.

I slap the note on the front desk when I pass it, not stopping to explain, and I simply walk right out of the school building.

The shadows croon softly and gather underneath my feet to dance between my toes.

They curl around my ankles and protect my feet from actually touching the ground.

I think about what had happened earlier when I connected with my shadow.

_'What was that? I'll have to experiment later on when I'm not so pissed'_

I sigh, anger starting to die down.

The shadows let me pull out my headphones and play some music before they link their hands with mine.

_"I am flesh and I am bone rise up _

_Ting, ting like glitter and gold_

_I've got fire in my soul, rise up _

_Ting, ting like glitter_

_Do you walk in the valley of kings?_

_Do you walk in the shadow of men who sold their lives to a dream? _

_Do you ponder the manner of things in the dark _

_The dark, the dark, the dark."_ I sing the beginning of the song, thanking every god out there that the music in my world is somehow in this world.

It's weird, but I won't question it, I'm just grateful for a little taste of home.

I sing softly underneath my breath, voice full of any emotion the songs bring.

The shadows sway and shiver and rumble with the lyrics, seemingly enjoying the rasp of my voice.

I walk all the way home and set my shoes on the dryer before taking a bath.

I put on my softest clothes, a pair of fuzzy kitten pajama pants and a long-sleeve black shirt with gold stars on the sleeves.

I curl up in bed with a notebook and write down the new aspects of my quirk.

By the time I finish my notes my previous rage is all but gone.

I grab an extra blanket, set my notebook to the side, and curl up with a shadow the size of a German shepherd.

I drift off to the rumbling purrs of the shadow.

**xXx**

I'm shaken awake by gentle hands and a soft voice.

I blink awake to see mom sitting on my bed, eyes stern and lips pursed in a small frown.

I sit up and rub the sleep from my eyes, a snake-like shadow curls over my shoulders and neck like a scarf.

"What happened at school today sweetie? They told me you walked out for no reason." Mom's tone demands an explanation even though her eyes are gentle.

"Katsuki fell off a bridge." I mumble, looking down at my sharp nails and fiddling with my fingers.

Mom sucks in a sharp breath and I glance up at her before looking back down quickly.

"Is he okay?" Mom asks, voice worried.

"Yeah, I caught him before he hit the river and got hurt." I tell her, she relaxes but gives me a look.

"But?" She prods.

"But then he started yelling at me, calling me worthless and told me that I was looking down on him. He said I shouldn't have saved him." I breathe out and mom stiffens.

"Oh?" Her voice has an edge to it that makes my chest feel warm.

The shadow on my shoulders seems to sink into me a little more, as though it can also feel the warmth in my chest.

"Yeah, I got really mad and I yelled at him because if he hit the water at that angle, his spine would've broken." My voice is quiet and I feel shame for losing my temper so thoroughly but I suppose he had it coming.

Mom nods, used to my knowledge of injuries and accepting my words as truth thanks to all the medical books I check out from the library.

"Well that wouldn't have been good." She says softly, rubbing my back soothingly.

"Yeah... I-I thought he was gonna die." My voice cracks and I feel tears gather in my eyes because I had been prepared to hear the _crunch_ of Katsuki's spine.

When I saw his falling position, I was preparing myself to drag his lifeless body out of that river, and if he got lucky then he would've been paralyzed from the waist down.

_But the people I care about are never lucky so I was ready for a funeral when I ran off that bridge_

"Oh baby..." Mom trails off.

"He got so _angry_ at me. I thought he was going to be **dead**, and he yelled at me for it." I sniffle, turning to look mom in the eye.

"Oh sweetheart come here." Mom coos, hugging my small frame to her body.

I wrap my arms around her and inhale floral perfume as I bury my face in her shoulder to hide my tears.

The shadow around my shoulders curls tighter around me, grounding me and not letting me spiral.

"I'm sorry I walked out of school but my shoes were wet, and I was really angry, and I just wanted to be home because-" Mom cuts me off by pressing my head into her shoulder.

I hiccup into her sweater and curl around her.

I did my best to ignore the image of Katsuki's broken body that haunted me behind my eyelids.

* * *

**(So, Anastasia found out a new aspect of her quirk! But at what cost? Some more of her issues come to light, she may be tough but nobody is ready to see a dead body no matter who you are. Plus, she's only 5, so her emotions are a little more intense than previously. Anywho, see you in the next chapter! I may add more music into chapters because I love music and Anastasia does too! She find it therapeutic in a way.)**

**Also, the song used is:**

**Glitter & Gold - Barns Courtney**


	9. Chapter 8: Resolutions and Friends

**(Hey everyone! This chapter gets kind of violent (not really), as well as some mentions of kidnapping. ****Some characters may be OOC but I hope you enjoy it regardless!)**

_'Thoughts'_

**{Special Actions}**

_**~Memories~**_

_"Singing"_

**"Speaking in Russian"***

***(Some words will still be in Russian simply because I like the way it looks. Those words will also be in italics, confusing I know.)**

Anastasia gets even older, loses a friend, gains an old friend back, gets into _another _fight, and saves Katsuki's ass (again)

* * *

My sixth birthday was the only birthday I had a friend over.

Shinsou cried when I invited him and I panicked because _holy shit I made him cry __**godkillmenow.**_

It was a very emotional affair and we had a sleepover in cat onesies.

_I've never seen my mom take so many pictures before in my LIFE-_

The cake was cat themed and I almost felt bad eating it.

_Almost._

Shinsou got me a cute cat hoodie with ears on the hood, it was purple like his eyes and it gave me sweater paws.

Mom got me more notebooks and a couple of action figures.

All in all it was super fun, and I have a feeling this is the start of something nice.

**xXx**

But like all nice things in my life, it didn't last.

Not long after my 6th birthday I went to the orphanage to see Shinsou only to find him gone.

I asked the people working there, they said he got adopted.

They wouldn't tell me where he went or who adopted him.

The other kids were celebrating.

**_I was furious._**

**xXx**

_Not long after that, the orphanage shut down after an anonymous call to the police department, as well as a small file of evidence found in Shinsou's room during their search._

I hid my smile in my mug as we watched the news.

The satisfaction of seeing that place shut down didn't mask the hurt of not being able to find Shinsou.

But I took comfort in the fact that he might be watching the news, that he might smile when he saw what was on the TV.

_That didn't mean it didn't burn whenever I saw that damn hoodie, the same lilac as his eyes._

**xXx**

I looked for Shinsou for months.

Mom eventually made me tone it down after we hit the 3 month mark.

I still search though, I'll probably never truly give up.

_But it was like he didn't exist._

I toned it down, but I constantly kept an ear open.

I waited for a call, a text, a letter, _**anything**_ that Shinsou might send to tell me where the hell he was.

_**Nothing ever came.**_

Eventually, I put it on the back burner.

If Shinsou wanted to talk to me or see me, then he knew my address.

It's not like I wouldn't see him at UA eventually anyway, so it wasn't a big deal.

_It still made my chest hurt whenever I saw that same shade of lilac._

**xXx**

Mom said nothing when I started buying purple sweaters and cat hair clips.

_I think the silence was what got to me the most._

**Why does everything fall apart when I don't want it to?**

_**Why isn't anyone paying attention?**_

**Look at me.**

**_Ļ̛̩͓͉͕̹̤̅̀ͯͦ̐́͢͟͝o̶̷̵̬̹͓̐́̽ͫ͞ͅo̷̮̗̮̠͔ͥ̓ͭ̾́̎͘k͛̎͒͐̃ͤ҉͏͔̖̲̬̥ a̝̦ͩ͢t̴̐͑͒ͧ҉̵̠̫ m̷̡̥̠̱̤̾̃ͤ̾e̢̗͙̿͘͢͠ dă̴̧̭̤͟͞m̽͜͏̳͈͢m̡̛̮̻̄̎ͮͫ́̕͝ͅiͣͪͪ̅͏̢̜͇͇͡͝͝ͅţ̱͔̖͎̓̿̽͢͝.̶̢̢̨͚̩̝̹ͯͣͫ̏͜͝_**

_**L̛̹͗̇͠Ȏ́͗ͤO̧͖̝̳̐́͟Ḵ̵͖̙͕̙̙ͫ̌͘͢ ẢT̵̯͍̻͚̹ͬͤ͢͠ M̵̶̡̛̤̞̮͍̜̿E̴͕̘ͣ͛̈́͗̀ Y̷̧̢̗̙̙̭͔̩̿͌͛ͤ͘O̷̧̰̞͙͕̓͠ͅͅṲ̶̐̀́͘͜͡ C̝͓̼̲̀ͨ͒͢͡O͊͏͕͖͓́͡W̨̱̳̔̅A̶̵̧͇͉͉͇͉̞ͭ̍͐̔̇̚͘͟͠R͊ͣD̻̝̅̒̕Ś̶̵͕̪̐͝.**_

**xXx**

So yeah, life wasn't great.

I'm growing my hair out for the sole reason of wanting a man bun.

So far it's down to my chin, who knew the craziness of my hair smoothed out when it got longer?

_Not me that's for fucking sure_

I plan to cut the underside and dye it.

Like an undercut, but mom says I have to wait until I'm older.

So for now I simply pull it back into a tiny poof and clip it with cat barrettes.

Some people at school tried making fun of me for it.

The bloody noses I gave them shut them up real quick.

Katsuki still won't talk to me.

_I feel so alone._

**xXx**

Why am I even trying to be a hero anyway?

Would I even make a good hero?

I shake my head so hard I nearly feel my brain rattle inside my skull.

_'No, don't think like that.'_

"I **will** be a hero." I whisper to the world, voice full of conviction.

The world does not whisper anything back.

But the shadows do, they whisper encouragements and they tell me 'of course you will, I believe you'.

_'But why? By this world's standards, you were a villain before you died. What's the point to all of this?' _My traitorous mind tells me.

I grit my teeth and glare out at the sidewalk, the shadows curling around my ankles fondly.

_'I'm living off of nothing but spite. I will be a hero because that's what this kid wanted before I hijacked his body. Yeah, I feel guilty for taking his chance at being a hero himself.'_

But so far, everyone here has done nothing but doubt and scorn me.

I **will **be a hero, whether it's to spite them or to fulfill the dream of a child who never got to see this world, I'm not entirely sure.

Back then, I saw how fucked up my world was, violence and bloodshed did_ absolutely_ **jack shit** to help with that.

People I cared about died because humans are selfish and greedy.

I will **not** allow this life to be the same.

I want to be a hero so I can save people that others don't think need saving.

Had Izuku been less forgiving and just a little more bitter he'd either be _dead _or the world's greatest villain.

_I'll save people because he was never saved, because nobody ever saved __**me **__either._

As Anastasia, my world was full of death and anger and I was the next in line to a throne built on bones.

I wanted to be an artist once, it was a pipe dream and_ I knew it _but I still tried anyway.

_I rebelled once more, a last ditch effort to try and claw my way out of the cage I was trapped in._

Then father found out, he burned my paintings into ash and when I woke up in the in-house infirmary I was **livid.**

But no amount of anger could last long in the face of a man who wasn't scared to beat me half to death.

My rebellion died out not long before I **actually **died.

_It pissed me off._

I only wanted to be something he didn't want.

But what could I do? Nobody would listen, and if they did father would be quick to kill them and give me a refresher on why I shouldn't rebel.

_I want to be a hero because someone needs to save the people who won't cry out for help, who can't cry out for help no matter who asks them._

I nod, mind made up.

_'The world may be against me, but I'll be __**damned**__ if I let it beat me into submission once more. I'm done being other people's puppet, I won't stand by and agree with what the world wants this time. __**I will be a hero, even if it kills me.'**_

The shadows coil around my arms and slide over my shoulders like a smug cat.

_'Plus, the shadows seem to be on board with my decision'_

I reach a hand up and run it down the slick but smoky surface of the shadow on my shoulders.

The shadows purr and rumble, clinging to me.

My lips curl into a smirk and I feel determination flow through me as I turn the corner.

**xXx**

I was walking around town, school had gotten out an hour ago and mom was cooking so I was bored.

The sky was cloudy and the wind buffeted against my face like I had done something to offend it.

_It just isn't my year I suppose._

I continue my trek down the sidewalk, when two men in baggy clothing turn out of the alleyway to walk in front of me.

They either haven't noticed me or they're ignoring my presence because they continue to talk about chemicals and 'stupid brats'.

_'Well that isn't suspect at all'_ I think dryly.

But then one of them mentions a large supply of nitroglycerin from 'the brat' and my mind skids to a halt.

'_Nitroglycerin? Actually, now that I think about it, I haven't seen Katsuki since we left school despite that fact that we're neighbors. What the hell!?'_

I tune into their conversation, slipping behind them with soft steps.

The shadows grumble and hiss softly at them, informing me they smell faintly of chemicals and burnt sugar.

_'That's what Katsuki smells like... But, there's now way he'd get kidnapped, this world can't be **that** far from canon_

**_..._**

_Right?'_

"Yeah, that kid is feisty as hell alright. Had to lock his hands up, the little shit!" The man on the left says, his long red hair pulled into a low ponytail.

"I know right! I think he might've gotten Kuro burned with those little party tricks! Lucky us he wasn't hard to knock out, right Sekozawa?" The man on the right snickers, shoving 'Sekozawa' a little.

"Man shut up! We can't go around talking about this much longer. Let's just get back to the boss so we can figure out what to do with the kid." Sekozawa hisses at the other man, mud colored eyes flashing.

_'Okay these guys are either the dumbest criminals I've ever seen in me life, or they plan to kidnap me as well'_

The men speed up and I follow quietly, slipping in and out from the shadows.

**xXx**

After a while we come across an abandoned warehouse.

The shadows tell me there are more men inside, they are dangerous.

_'And Katsuki?'_ I ask them mentally.

_**"L̝̫̀ͧ͡ị̴̧̳ͣͦ͜ṱ͙̪̓̄͆͒͌̃͘̕͡t̎ĺ̷̖̲̗̝͛̅e̶̢̛̫͉ͫ̍ b̞̩̫̳ͧ͂ͩ́́o̷̹̙͙̜̗ͧͮͥ́ͣm̢͓͒̄͂̕͢͜͝b̧̗̲̤̦ͪͨ̊̓ͅ b̵̨̢̻̱̙̹͚̭ͪͫͮͩ͜ơ̜̙̓ͦ͐̅y̴̨̖̼͍̌͞͠is̶̷̲ͫ̅ͩ͑̚͜͟͝ fin̨͉̼̪̩̯̎̀̇͠e̶̶̬̥͓ͣͬͩ̄̔̚̕͢͠͡,ͦ̄ͮ͏̀҉̴̦͖̙̻̜̱͘͢ fl̵̡̇͟͏̛̝̰ȩ̴̷̫͇͎̗̠ͣͧ̕sh̨̰̐̉̍̏͝ ẇ͟҉̧̺͈̻̝͘͟͜o̠ͣͨ͢ů̧̡̠͎̣ͩ̕̕̕n͋̍̓҉҉̸̧̛͈̀dͮ̀͘͡͏̷͝͏̣̮̹̜̪s̵̵̼̘̒̅ͤ̐ͫ͘͘͝ ȏ̶̵̢̘n̷̷̶̡̬̠̻͉͖̭̎͌͑͐͑l̲̬ͦͮͦ̽͊͐͢ŷ̕͢͠҉͈̮̱̹̳̲̕͞.̸̶̲̘̹̐ͦͫ͊" **_The inform me, voices tinged with slight irritation.

The men are talking again but I tune them out and let the shadows guide me over to a back door.

There's a padlock on it, which is no match for my bobby pin and lockpicking skills.

The door is open in record time, I leave my backpack in some bushes near a window.

I wait for the shadows to give me the clear.

When they do I slide into the stairway to the basement, quiet as death.

Several men are talking and chatting, I hear Katsuki snarling out profanities at them.

The door closes behind me with a soft click.

I wait for a second, wondering if any of them have super hearing.

Nobody comes up the stairs to try and murder me, so I guess not.

I slither down the steps, shadows keeping my approach silent.

I peek around the corner once I reach the bottom of the steps, cataloguing what's going on and piecing together a plan.

There are several men standing around in a half-circle, there are various builds and physical oddities among them.

_But no visible weapons, stay alert._

A slightly beat up Katsuki is chained to a chair and, unfortunately, these men had enough foresight to render his explosions useless by strategic binding on his hands.

I let out several curses in my mind.

I slide back around the corner and let out a soundless exhale.

_'Okay, so there's seven men, I don't know their quirks, Katsuki is as good as useless for the time being, and I have very little idea of what my quirk can do. _

_There's a high chance of me getting injured and possibly kidnapped as well_

_..._

_Evan always did tell me I had the Devil's luck so let's hope that followed me through the underworld as well'_

I take one more breath before opening my eyes and spotting a length of pipe just a foot away from me.

It's the perfect length for a bat, and it looks sturdy despite it's grimy surface.

_'Well, at least the luck of being the anime protagonist hasn't failed me yet'_

I grin and grab the pipe before rounding the corner.

"Knock knock!" I chirp, tapping the pipe against the ground in unison with my voice. I throw the pipe over my shoulder like a bat and curl my lips into a crooked grin, eyes gleaming with malice.

"Knuckle sandwich delivery." I all but snarl at them, grin widening as Katsuki turns to me with a gobsmacked expression.

Some of the men laugh while others make noises of surprise.

I'm moving before any of them can question my appearance or lash out at me.

The first man is tall and buff, with brown hair and wide black eyes.

I leap off the ground and slam the length of pipe into his temple with a fury I had nearly forgotten.

He goes down like a sack of bricks and I'm onto the next person.

I manage to take down two more men before the rest burst into action.

One man with rust colored hands makes a swipe for me but I slither out of the way like a snake.

_'A rust quirk perhaps? Probably touch activated, best avoid getting near him'_

I leap into the air just in time to dodge a leg that surely would've nailed me in the ribs

These men certainly aren't pulling any punches despite the fact that I'm a child.

How troublesome.

The man behind me snarls and I twist mid-air to slam the pipe into his head with a loud sound that echoes in the room.

He drops like deadweight and the man with the rust quirk surges forward.

He manages to get a grip on my pipe and I watch it turn copper as my eyes widen a little.

_'Of all the times for the universe to let me be right, it had to be about **this**?'_

I drop the pipe as the crumbles into nothing on the floor.

"Scared you little punk?" Rust-man spits at me.

"Only of your face." I quip, sliding backwards to avoid a tackle.

"You're gonna regret that you little shit." Rust-man snarls, features twisting into anger.

"Only as much as your mother regrets having you." I deadpan before kneeing him in the balls as hard as I can.

He doubles over with a wheeze, and I slam my knee into his face before swinging out to slam my fist into his jaw, successfully knocking him out.

_'It's a miracle I haven't gotten injured yet' _

The shadows hiss out a warning but I move a little to slow and something slams into my head.

I go flying and land on the ground hard enough to feel the impact.

_'Spoke too soon' _I think bitterly.

I sit up, head spinning and vision blurring with each after-image of me moving my head.

I feel blood running down my face and I can hear Katsuki hissing like an angry sailor.

I shove myself up and flex my fingers like a cat, claws sliding out.

_'Four down, three to go and **that asshole** is next'_

"Alright then, no more Mr. Nice Guy." I mutter, running forward with only a slight wobble to my steps.

"Fucking brat!" I realize this is the man that hit me, his arm has turned into a baseball bat and it's now splattered with blood.

"You whore." I snap at him, he charges at me and we meet in the middle.

I slice his arm-bat-thing in half and he howls but by then I'm already planting my heel into his face with vengeance.

I turn and dive for Katsuki, claws slicing through his restraints like butter.

"Give 'em hell, Firecracker." I grin at him.

Katsuki looks at me with wide, vulnerable eyes before he quickly masks it with anger, turning to face the now terrified men.

"DIE!" He bellows, hands splaying out in front of him at the last two men still conscious.

The following explosion leaves my ears ringing as it slams into the two men and the wall behind them, leaving a shallow crater in it.

They fall to the ground with identical thuds that are nearly comical.

I let out a laugh, claws sliding back in with a wiggle of my fingers.

The building rocks with the aftereffects of his explosion, lights flickering and dust falling.

The shadows curl over me, soothing cool hands over my wound as it begins to close.

"Christ, how the hell did you even get here anyway you fucker?" Katsuki breaths from somewhere to my left.

I turn to him and he winces at the sight of the blood smeared over my face before he defaults back to rage.

"I could've gotten out myself! You didn't have to come and _save _me like I'm some useless fuckin' extra,** you bastard**!" Katsuki snarls, hands coming up to grab at my collar.

The shadows hiss at him but make no move to stop him per my insistence.

"Oh really? How would you have done that? You can't use your quirk and you were outnumbered as all hell." I respond.

Katsuki falters, hurt flashing across his face but I continue speaking.

"I know you're strong, but there are people in this world stronger than you. You aren't unbeatable, and that isn't a weakness or a flaw. Hell, I'm sure even All Might has an opponent stronger than him. So just accept my help you twat waffle, and accept the fact that you're not going to be able to get out of _every_ situation you find yourself in." I say calmly, untangling Katsuki's hands from my collar as he stares at me.

_(Somewhere in a seedy bar, All for One sneezes and nearly drops his drink before brushing it off as unimportant, the underworld talks about him all the time)_

"I'm going to do my best to make sure this isn't going to happen again." I tell him firmly.

"Why, because you'll be here to save me like I'm some-" Katsuki spits at me.

"Because I fucking care about you, you fat bitch!" I yell, voice overpowering him and cutting him off.

Katsuki looks at me with big, surprised eyes as I let out a slow exhale.

"I care about you even though you're a douchebag, that's just how it is. This isn't going to happen again because I'm gonna drag your sorry ass off to training and when we're strong enough, this'll stop happening." I breath out, forcing myself to calm down. "That's just how it is, so suck it up and let's get the hell out of here before one of them wakes up."

"You're gonna train me to get stronger?" Katsuki's voice is full of disbelief.

"Yes, you fucking matchstick, I'm going to train with you." My tone leaves no room for arguments.

Katsuki looks from me to the bodies of the men I knocked out, and back again.

"Alright, fucking whatever you creepy nerd. Let's go call the police then go home." Katsuki finally huffs.

"Good plan." I say flatly as we begin to exit the warehouse.

"You... You don't think I'm weak?" Katsuki's voice is small.

"No, I _know_ you aren't weak, but there's always a bigger fish. So let's just get out of here and go home." I sigh, suddenly tired.

"Okay." He all but whispers, eyes full of conflict.

I reach out a hand and he glances at it before taking it.

His hand is damp and mine are streaking with dirt, grime, and some blood but neither of us care.

We walk out of the warehouse and I grab my bag out of the bushes.

I use some wet wipes to clean off my face before offering some to Katsuki.

He takes them without comment and I realize we're still holding hands, but I don't bother to point it out.

"Hey, if some shit like this happens again... I hope you know I'll go help your ass break out, just like this time, alright?" I tell him, voice soft.

_'Personally, I really don't think it'll happen again... Or at least I hope it won't, it's more of an analogy more than anything'_

Katsuki looks at me intensely and I'm reminded of another pair of red eyes staring at me in a similar fashion.

_'But from where?' _The thought slips away as soon as it comes, like sand through my fingers, it makes my brows furrow a little bit in confusion.

I don't have time to dwell on it because Katsuki nods and gives my hand a firm squeeze before dropping it.

"Alright nerd, but that just means we'll have to get stronger until it stops happening." Katsuki huffs. "And you're shit at stealth, fucking announcing your presence like a dumbass."

I snicker and bump his shoulder with mine, sending him a smile.

"Guess we'll have to made a pretty hardcore training plan then, huh?" I grin.

"Yeah, we will." Katsuki smiles back and we walk home together.

_'Maybe today wasn't so bad after all'_

_(We forgot to call the police in our excitement, but someone else called in for us, so we'll just have to let it slide)_

* * *

**(So that's it for this chapter! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it! I'm not the best at writing fight scenes, but I hope this one turned out well!**

**Also! Some responses for the recent comments:**

**Response to Deepak Singh Chauhan: There are plenty quirkless Izuku stories that fit that criteria, one of them for example: but you gotta get up at least once more - simkjrs**

**Response to WouldYouKidnapA: I hope this chapter clears that up for you!**

**And, response to angeldunn1993: I'm so happy you like the story, and that it keeps you interested! (｡•ω•｡)**

**That's all folks! See you in the next chapter!)**


	10. Chapter 9: Smoke And Mirrors

**(Back with another chapter, yay! Sorry it's a couple days late, I had to go to a wedding and it got a little crazy. I've also been having some writers block on some aspects, so sorry if any parts seem wonky or out of place! I also apologize for the wait, and I made this chapter extra long to make up for it! This chapter contains mentions of kidnapping (wow I seem to have a knack for letting my faves get kidnapped don't I?), injury, violence, panic attacks, and some developing PTSD ****so there's some ****_more_**** trauma for bby Anna, yay (****not****)! S****o please read with caution!)**

_'Thoughts'_

**{Special Actions}**

_**~Memories~**_

_"Singing"_

**"Speaking in Russian"***

***(Some words will still be in Russian simply because I like the way it looks. Those words will also be in italics, confusing I know.)**

Anastasia saves Katsuki's ass (multiple times), does some parkour, finds out more about her abilities, gets kidnapped (on her own for once), develops a hatred of mirrors, AND adopts (read: kidnaps) a kitten... Just with more details.

* * *

Unfortunately, my promise to Katsuki about me not letting him get kidnapped again went off the rails because the universe just loves to spite me.

Turns out my earlier analogy about Katsuki getting kidnapped again became more of a prophecy.

God hates me, there's just no other explanation.

Like it has been less than 5 months and Katsuki has gotten kidnapped _eleven **fucking** times._

While I would be getting angry at that fact, I'm more tired of these **_fucking morons_ kidnapping my friend.**

Hell, at this point I'm going to have to start putting a fucking tracker on him.

What's also concerning, aside from the sheer _amount _of times he's been kidnapped, is how literally **_nobody _**noticed.

Like, **how.**

Eventually, whoever wants to kidnap Katsuki realized that I was 100% going to crash their operation.

So they spread word that if you wanted the nitroglycerin kid, you'd also have to grab the creepy kid with sharp nails as well.

However, while that was a calculated risk, man these criminals are _really _fucking bad at math.

Why?

Because I can pick locks a hell of a lot faster than Katsuki, and I have a willingness to both maim and kill if need be.

Especially since I am not obligated by law to do less damage or to keep injuries to a minimum.

So yeah, not their best idea.

Hell, if anything all they're doing is giving me more practice dummies and experience for my future career.

Now, if only Katsuki would get on my fucking level.

I mean, come on, the kid has got _unlimited _fucking access to explosives!

Alas.

**xXx**

Aside from the constant kidnappings, I'd say my year has only gotten progressively worse.

As usual.

However, Katsuki and I can now bond over trauma from kidnappings because _whoo boy that last one was **bad.**_

I may now have a deeply rooted hatred for mirrors.

But now I have a cat, so who cares?

**xXx**

This all happened not long after my seventh birthday.

Katsuki came over and we lit off fireworks in the back yard during the night.

Katsuki also got me an adult sized paper parasol with a black handle, covered in grey crows and red spider lilies all over the top.

He said it fit my school-nicknamed moniker of Shinigami*****, and maybe now I'd go outside more.

What a rude way to say I've got a dark aesthetic and an aversion to sunlight.

God I love that little bastard.

He also told me I'd grow into it eventually.

Stubborn little ass doesn't want to admit the parasol is far too large for my tiny frame, but I suppose he does have a point.

Personally, I think my new nickname is pretty epic.

I mean getting called 'Death Bringer' sure gives me a hell of an adrenaline boost, because _how fucking cool is that?_

Plus, it's also rather fitting considering the fact that I've looked Death in the eyes and told them "no".

I imagine it also helps that Evan always loved crows, always telling me "they looked so pretty this time of year!", the morbid bitch.

I suppose my love for spider lilies also plays into that and whatnot.

_'Maybe my aesthetic is actually being the Grim Reaper.'_

Time sure flies when you're trying not to die a second time.

Although, the way I earned that moniker is quite the story...

Perhaps one for another time.

**xXx**

I had decided it was high time for me to explore my quirk more.

I've held it off long enough and if I plan to keep kicking peoples asses then I'll need to know more about it anyway.

Barring the fact that I most certainly would've died had my quirk not worked like I had suspected, I'm calling it a win.

It was a week after my birthday, I had insomnia and the night beckoned me for mischief.

Who am I to snub my inner criminal?

**xXx**

I lay in bed, looking up at my fairy lights as I pondered the possibility of spontaneously knocking myself out.

I turn to the clock that says 2:14 in glowing red.

I sigh and throw the covers off, swinging my legs to set my feet onto my black carpet and wiggle my toes.

I walk over to my closet and slip into a pair of grey joggers, a long sleeve black shirt, some socks, and my black sneakers.

Creeping over to my door, I lock it securely before moving a blanket underneath my own and shaping it to my form.

I slide over to my window, shoving the dark blue curtains aside and sliding it open.

I breathe in the cool air and haul myself onto the window ledge.

I look out into the night, moonlight gleaming silver and city lights shining brightly.

The night beckons me.

I place my feet onto the edge of the window sill and look down into the alley.

_'My quirk caught me last time I nearly went splat, what better time to test it than at 2 in the morning?'_

"You'll catch me won't you, darlings?" I whisper softly to the shadows.

The shadows hiss and croon out affirmations and I sigh fondly.

_'Of course they'll catch me, it's just like ice-skating. If you don't trust the ice to be there when you land, you'll never take the leap'_

I glance back into my dimly lit room once more before I turn back to face the city.

Leaning forwards, I let go of the window sill.

I tip headfirst towards the ground, wind rushing past me and shadows growing darker as I near the concrete.

_'If I go in headfirst then I'll come back out headfirst, if my theories are correct that is'_

The shadows writhe and reach out to me as I connect with the ground, embracing me with cool hands.

I plunge into darkness instead of splattering on the concrete like a bug.

I laugh soundlessly into the abyss, blinking around as I float in nothingness.

_'Well now what do I do? I've got no map or anywhere to reemerge...'_

Just as I think of a map, gray smoke begins to swirl in the darkness.

I watch on, entranced as the smoke slowly shifts into buildings, cars, and people.

_'It's... Making a life size map of the city, people, cars and all'_ My eyes widen with the realization.

I can only gape at the map that stretches out for miles, buildings see-through and phantom people shifting as smoky cars zoom by.

_'Holy shit, it even moves in real time'_

I reach out a hand towards a nearby building, twisting my body as though I was underwater.

To my surprise, the shadows seem to push me towards my goal.

I slide along the ground like it's made of oil, wobbling a bit in shock.

I find myself in an alley a couple of blocks away.

_'How the hell do I let them know I want to pop up here? It's not like last time where I just had to reach out'_

An idea pops into my mind and I scuff my heel on the ground twice.

The mist dissipates and I'm left with a cool tingle in my body as I rush through the darkness.

_'Hell yeah, thanks for helping with the idea Dorothy'_

My ears pop softly as I fly out of the shadows at a speed that nearly blinds me.

_'I guess I did fall kind of fast didn't I?'_

Brick flies past my vision and I go sailing further up above the rooftop.

_'Oh yeah, this building is shorter than my apartment building _

_..._

S_hit'_

I flail in the air for a few seconds as I reach the same height I fell at, weightlessness taking over my body for a moment.

Then, I'm falling back through the air, several feel above the top of the building.

I quickly shift my body, angling it towards the roof as I near it.

Landing in a roll, shoulder first, before I roll to my feet and pop up like a jack in the box.

I look around the roof, city noises filling my ears as I turn and spot my apartment building a couple of blocks away.

_'Holy shit it fucking worked'_

"By the gods..." I breathe out as laughter bubbles in my chest.

I let out a breathless laugh from my place on the roof, excitement and adrenaline flooding my veins.

The shadows howl out in victory, curling and shifting around me in joy.

"Let's do it again." I tell them, voice full of exhilaration.

The shadows hiss and trill back, just as eager.

I run across the roof, leaping over a small alley and make my way across the city.

_'I'm just fucking around right now, but maybe I can work with this whenever I get too tired to continue'_

I land, roll, and flip across buildings, swinging up fire escapes and scaling buildings, getting farther from my house with each step.

I finally come to a stop, apartment building far away and barely visible.

"Let's test the range." I try to convince myself this was for research.

_'Well what do you know, being an idiot and acting on impulse actually helped me for once'_

I dive off the hotel I'm on top of, wind whistling past me once more, letting out a small whoop of elation before I plunge into the shadows.

The city forms around me, quicker this time, smoke and mist slotting together at a fast pace.

The map ends around seven or eight buildings past the one I live in.

_'So my range is only about five kilometers... We can work on that later, I'm starting to get tired'_

I slide forwards, gliding through the map like I was wearing roller skates.

_'Speaking of roller skates, maybe I should buy some? It'd help with this and I could get around the city faster'_

I file my idea away for later as I reach my apartment building and scuff my heel twice against the alley.

The shadows seem to get the message and I'm flying through the air again.

I come flying out, hands managing to grab my window sill as I scramble inside.

I lay on the floor, breathless and tired, adrenaline fading and body beginning to follow.

_'God I need to work on my stamina for when I'm using my quirk'_

I heave myself to my feet, closing my window and curtains as I glance at my alarm clock.

I blink in surprise at the 4:35AM that greets me.

_'Damn, I was out for that long? I better get a watch if I plan to do this again'_

I grab my journal with the crows on the front, writing down what just happened.

**"Alright, so people are glowing lights that smell like them and if I want to run around the city I get a map... Good to know."** I mutter to myself in Russian as I put my journal back, pencil sitting neatly beside it.

_'I'll have to test that out later on'_ I think to myself as I change back into my pajamas.

I hop into bed, going under both covers as some shadows come out and curl up with me.

I drift off to sleep after a couple of minutes.

**xXx**

Turns out I can only pop up near people if I either know or am familiar with them.

It also doesn't work on animals and if I don't have enough height or momentum when I fall, I get a quick sip of bone hurting juice.

Found that one out the hard way and I had to lay in the forest for nearly an hour as my broken spine healed.

When I trudged home I was covered in twigs and my pants were stained with dirt and grass.

Katsuki laughed until he cried when I told him about it, the little shit.

**xXx**

I couldn't tell you which kidnapping it was, I stopped counting after the first nine of them.

But it was around the same time that I named my quirk.

My quirk was now called _Shadow Walker._

I named it not long before I got kidnapped by a guy who thought I was his dead wife.

It's quite the story...

**xXx**

I was walking around the mall, it was Saturday and I had nothing better to do.

Katsuki and I had plans to go hiking next weekend.

He told me to bring a knife and when I got home I was appalled I didn't already own one.

It was a disgrace to my inner sadist and now here I was, in a knife shop.

Currently, I'm debating over a sleek black matte butterfly blade, a simple set of dragon-engraved throwing knives, and a tactical hunting knife.

Since I can't decide, I'm getting all of them.

The shop keep gave me an odd look but sold them to me nonetheless.

Which is very suspect but I can't really bring myself to care too much about a man who just sold a seven year old knives.

_'Right now it's not my problem this world is fucked up'_

Afterwards I got my knives and was now on a mission to find a pair of reinforced combat boots.

When I went home to drop off my knives mom made me explain their uses and why I had them.

She gave me a kiss and told me about a good shop for hiking boots not far off.

Well... At least she told me she was making katsudon for dinner.

Unfortunately, due to me grumbling about having to be outside longer than necessary, I didn't notice my stalker.

The shadows were also ignorant because I had been training my quirk a lot recently, tiring them out and slowing reaction times.

They were too sluggish to warn me until I felt a prick in my neck and their warnings were getting quieter by the second.

I got a couple good hits in but he had some kind of gas with him, it hit me in the face and I inhaled it before I could react.

I cursed and told the now softly raging shadows to keep an eye on him right before I lost consciousness.

_'Damn it all to hell, my stupid child brain lets me not be as vigilant, oh I am **so **working on this when I get back home'_

**xXx**

I woke up shackled to a chair, my hair was down and in my face.

I huff silently, the shadows are silent in a way that unnerves me.

_'Fuck, was that gas something that messed with my quirk?'_

I check the room, making sure I was alone, before shaking my head and moving my hair out of my face.

The room was dimly lit and made of concrete, a heavy metal door was to my right.

My legs were strapped to the chair legs with duct tape, my arms were cuffed behind me, more tape was securing my torso and biceps to the chair.

I'm almost offended at my lack of durable restraints but this works in my favor I suppose.

I strain my ears and realize I could hear lots of movement and people talking and laughing.

And... Carnival music?

_'That's right, there's a carnival in town, right over the empty plot where that factory was destroyed'_

I mentally cursed my luck, I was surrounded by people who would never hear me because I was underground.

_'Alright, so I've got no quirk, no hope of backup, I don't know who kidnapped me, and I've got enough restraints to be in a bad BDSM movie'_

**"Great."** I spit out quietly in Russian. **"Fucking perfect."**

_'On the upside, if I do get out it'll be easy to get lost in the crowd, there'll be lots of witnesses, and I can be as vicious as I want without worrying about that quirk law'_

I force myself to calm down as I hear loud footsteps.

The metal door creaks open, sound booming in the room, the muffled noises are overridden easily.

A man enters with a small smile that widens upon seeing me awake.

His hair is pitch black and slicked back like he's about to star in Grease, he's wearing a tan flannel, blue jeans, and brown boots.

He looks slightly deranged, despite his homey appearance and aura.

_'Well he's got to be considering he fucking kidnapped and drugged me'_ I think bitterly.

His eyes are a murky brown, and he's not very tall, only around 5'7".

Despite the plainness of his appearance he seems familiar to me for some reason.

"How are you dear?" He asks, voice full of fondness that makes my skin crawl.

He walks over to me and his face finally clicks in my mind.

_'That's right, it was all over the news. The vigilante Chrome was killed in combat during a fight, her identity was revealed as Yukiko Terauchi. She was married to Yasushi Terauchi around Christmas a while back. She had a gem quirk that allowed her to turn things into sapphire and emerald, she could also turn into dust which was why her death was so dramatized. She was never actually caught, and not long after her funeral her husband went off the grid after killing 52 people during what police assume is a psych break from grief.' _My mind whirls with the new information as the man nears me.

Yasushi looks at me with eyes full of love and passion that makes me want to lash out.

My blood runs cold and the snarled answer on my tongue dies as realization washes over me.

_'His wife had heterochromia, one eye was green and the other was blue... He thinks I'm his wife'_

I swallow my panic and meet his eyes with a glare.

Yasushi's smile falls a little and he pouts slightly.

My stomach churns.

"Why are you still mad at me dear? What can I do to make it up to you? I'll do anything." He begs, voice full of desperation. "I know you got angry and disappeared for a while but now you're back and we can fix everything."

_'But the gods he really does think I'm his wife...' _I feel bile threaten to fill my mouth at the thought. _'Does he think she's still alive?'_

"It's alright, I'll go grab your favorite dish and we can talk it out over dinner, okay?" The man chirps and I can only nod in response, mind _whirling._

_'Alright, so it's late in the day and I don't know how long I've been out for, so that tidbit isn't all that helpful'_

I glance back at Yasushi as he exits, a happy hop in his step that makes my hair stand on end.

_'No visible weapons on him but I better be cautious. N__ow the real question: Do I play the "missing" wife or do I play mastermind?'_

I debate a little before landing on mastermind, playing the wife can only end in ways I'd rather not think of.

I piece together a half-assed plan as I wait for the deranged widower to get back.

I manage to wiggle my fingers into the slit along the stiches of my belt, where a small multi-purpose mini lockpick lay.

_'Thank my past self for being a paranoid bitch, I've never been more grateful for my anxiety before **in my life'**_

The man comes back some minutes later, pushing a small foot cart with a bowl of pasta, ceramic bowls, silverware, a couple of wine glasses, and wine.

_'Wow, real upscale for an impromptu get together with your supposed wife, isn't it?'_

Yasushi moves a table out from behind me and begins setting down the plates and glasses.

He smiles at me and I give him a wane smile back as I begin to unlock my cuffs.

_'Dumbass, never cuff your prisoner's hands where you can't see them'_

As the man continues to set up everything, I cover the sounds of the locks turning with the clutter of silverware and fine china.

The man set down silverware for me within arms reach and I nearly drop my lockpick at his sheer _stupidity._

_'Giving me weapons? What the hell is this crazy bitch thinking? Is everyone these days just fucking brain dead?' _I think incredulously as I force myself out of my shock to continue my motions.

I unlock the handcuffs just as he finishes, holding my breath and letting it out silently when he pays it no mind.

I keep my hands in place as though I still have the cuffs on, shifting them to rest underneath my butt as I move the lockpick back into my belt.

I clear my throat to get his attention and he turns to me with soft eyes.

"What is it?" Yasushi asks gently.

"How will I eat with all these restraints on?" I respond, keeping my voice light and soft.

Yasushi's eyes widen and he gives me a little nod.

"Right! Sorry about that, I didn't want you to get out while I was getting ready." He admits sheepishly, glancing at me shyly from under his eyelashes.

"Well how about you just remove some of the tape?" My voice is smooth and sweeter than honey.

_'Really laying on the charm here but I kinda need it to work'_

"Good idea, gosh you're always so smart Yuki-chan." He says fondly as he grabs one of the butter knives and does a little slicing motion in the air.

My eyes widen minutely as the tape on my torso falls off, cut into ribbons as they flutter to the floor.

_'Oh sweet fuck he's got a quirk like Law's... That's alright, I can work with this'_

I let out a slow exhale and flash Yasushi a smile that gives none of my inner panic away.

Yasushi smiles and walks over to me, setting the knife down on the table.

"You'll need your hands to eat won't you, can't believe I almost forgot that." He softly berates himself.

_'Okay, I only get one chance at this, don't fuck it up'_

I shift my legs a little and realize the tape has some give already.

_'Oh, I probably thrashed in my sleep... Never thought I'd be grateful for nightmares either but today seems to be full of surprises'_

As Yasushi nears I move my head to block his view and he gives me a questioning look.

"I do need my hands for eating but..." I trail off, ducking my head in faux shyness to glance up at him through my eyelashes. "No welcome back kiss?"

Yasushi melts and nods vigorously, looking excited.

_'Hook, like, and sinker motherfucker, hell yeah'_

Yasushi steps in front of me and hooks some of my hair behind my ear before dropping his hand back to his side.

_'Not really the romantic are you? Oh well, I can judge your shitty kissing tactics later, this works out well for me'_

I withhold the urge to bite off a couple of his fingers, and instead give him an encouraging look.

He leans in, eyes closed and I wait until his nose nearly brushes mine.

I tilt my head slightly to the side, licking my lips in a nervous habit I never quite got rid of.

And then, **I strike.**

Quick as the cobra my mother always called me, I sink my teeth into his nose with vengeance.

My pearly whites slice through the cartilage of his nose like it's butter and I grin as I taste iron.

Yasushi howls, which sounds odd and distorted with his nose in my mouth, and tries to shove me back.

But I whip my hands out and grab his wrists in a bruising grip.

There's a loud tear from the tape as I shove my legs forward, using my leverage on his body to pull myself up.

I finally draw my teeth back from his nose, shoving his hands away and placing my own on the back of the chair.

"You little bitch!" He hisses, voice warped by his now deformed and profusely bleeding nose as he flails backwards.

I grin at him, mouth smeared crimson and teeth tinged pink with blood.

I wrap my legs around his neck, quietly thanking my obsession with Natasha Romanov, and push off the chair with all my might.

I twirl in the air, Yasushi twists with me before I _lean_ hard.

We go towards the ground, Yasushi spitting out curses as my knees frame his face.

His already fucked up nose meets the concrete with a sickening _crunch _and I unwrap myself from him.

Yasushi's head bounces back up and I waste no time.

I place my hands on the ground and spin my hips to plant my shoe into his temple.

He drops like deadweight and I don't bother celebrating my victory.

I grab the cuffs from where they fell and drag him over to the chair to cuff him to it.

I peel the tape off my pants and run over to the door, heaving it open.

Spotting some stairs to my left I slam the door behind me and haul ass up them.

I can feel blood dripping down my chin and staining my shirt as it dries during my mad dash up the stairs.

I reach the top and find another door, labeled 'Employees Only' on a sign.

**"Shit, this is probably a ride."** I curse before shouldering the door open. **"I'm sure whoever is here can live with my being a little bloody."**

I blink in surprise at my own face that greets me.

**"Fucking hall of mirrors, it's gonna take me forever to get out of here." **I huff as I close the slightly ruined door behind me.

I begin to make my way through the mirrors, leaving slightly bloody fingerprints behind.

Suddenly, my vision darkens for a second and I hear low hisses and snarls.

**"Darlings?"** I ask softly.

The shadows croon and curl around me, feeling panicked as they assure me they're back.

**"Oh thank god, let's dip."** I mumble as I continue my trek through the mirrors.

The shadows seem wary of them and I don't know _why._

And then it all goes to hell.

I reach the middle of the hall of mirrors, surrounded by them on every side.

From what glances I got earlier, I look wild.

Covered in blood and dirt, hair flying everywhere eyes feral.

_'Now I'm starting to think I should fix that before I run into another human being, they might run in terror if I meet them like this'_

I make eye contact with a mirror and freeze.

Because staring back at me is _not my reflection._

In the mirror stands a tall creature, it's skin like ash, shining murky in the lighting and eyeless sockets boring into my soul.

It's tall and lanky, reminding me eerily of Slenderman, only a little darker and made of powder and glass.

My breath hitches and the thing tilts it's head back and _howls._

The mirrors rattle and the shadows screech out **dangerdanger**_**dANGER.**_

I turn in the other direction and _run._

Only to come face to face with another one of them, waiting for me just beyond the glass.

More howls join in and the mirrors shake behind me as I freeze because _oh my god **whatthefuckarethosethings?**_

And then, the thing in front of me begins to _climb out of the fucking mirror._

My heart stops in my chest.

I take a step back as the shadows snarl and lash out only to go through the creatures like they're nothing.

More of them step out of the mirrors around me and my heart hummingbirds in my chest.

_'If the shadows can't touch them, what good can I do?'_

I can hear more of them creeping up behind me.

The lights flicker in and out.

That seems to set them into motion and they lunge.

I try and dart out of the way but there's _so many of them oh**mygod.**_

Claws dig into me, pinning me to the ground.

I snarl and flex, sliding my own claws out and raking them across the chest of one the nearest creatures.

The thing screeches and lurches backwards, chest gaping open where the wound would be, glass shining underneath.

The rest of them seem to get angrier as the shadows lash out with me.

I send some of them flying, hissing and spitting and swiping at them.

One of them gets a good grip on my shoulder.

I cry out at the _painpain**pain.**_

My shoulder tears open like paper all the way to a couple inches past my spine, I know because I can feel every inch of torn skin.

The wound pulses white hot and I turn to plunge my claws into the things chest.

_'Everything hurts **howdidithurtme?** Why am I in pain? There's so much **bloodbloodpainpainohgodhe'sdeadsOMEBODYHELP '**_

_'They're gonna kill me... I can't die here_

_**Not now**_

What do I-

**K̛̄̒ͭ̔͘͞͏̶̡͓̖ ̡̧̙͖͕̼͕ͭ͋͐̂͂ͬ̚͘͟İ̊̅ͦ̃͠͏͏͉̠̜͓ ̡ͣ̈ͩ͏͈͓̭͢L̈ͩͭ͘҉̤ ̥̫̦ͫ͡͠͡L̡͕͇͑̃͆̀́͠ ̸̛̰͇̖̟͎̰ͫͣ̈̋̃́͝ ̴̢̤ͣ́͒͢T ̶̙̫̭̇ͯ͋͌̌̽͒H̋̉̌̅͗́ͨ͐͝͏̴͍̞͇̩̞̤ͩ́͞͞E̶̶̛̬̜̬͚̱̜̬̤ͩ̓͆͛ͣ̓ͧ͞ ̵̡̹̹̳̝͂͊͆̕Mͨ̃̊̑͑̿͞͝͏̧̹̩̬͢͝ ͉̯̬̮̦̘̞̪̒́͠ ̧ͨ͏̨̝̬̱A̶̧͇̤͑͐̇̎̒̓ͬ͘͜͟͞͞ ̧̘̼̗̘̭͈͙̥̐̏̾ͣ͗̈́͛̆͞N̷̡̮͓̘̒̔̊̈̐̅̿ ̡͈̼̜̺̭̺̗ͧ́̕Ã̛̟̼̮̟̙̎́̓͐̀̕͜͞͝ ̸̵̢̗͎̦̪̼͚͊̉͠͠͠ͅͅS̵̢̢̭̩̟͇̜͕ͯ̿̔͒̂͠T̸̢̛̛̲̟̾ͭ̀ͨ̏̾̀͝͠ ̴̄ͣ͜͏͏̶̷̴҉̯Â̵̶̡̨̡̮̻͍̭̟̳̹̹͖͉͉̰̹̳͑̈́́̑ͬ̀͟͞͡͝Ş̰̜͓̑͒ͭ ̵̡̣̃̔̄ͫ̀ͧ͘͟͝͞I̴̢̖̳͎̠̗͂̔́̃ͬ̒ͮ́ ͐͂͏̭̠̙͍͈̻̕ͅ A̶̵͐̀̕͢͡͏͍̰**

_That..._

_**Ķ̃̅̈́ͯ̚͞͡͝҉̴̤̠̞̦͓͉̙̕IL̛ͤͬ͛͏̵̬͎̣̞̪̳͘͡L̴̢̡̲̦͓̺ͫ͢͞͠ ̱̩̫̭̍ͩ̅͆̉͟T̢̘̰͇͇̪͂́̕͟͢͞͞H̨̹ͬͮ̈́͌̒̒ͬ͐͠Eͯͯ͑̏̒̐̀̚͡͏̵̶̢̟̩̣̦̮͙̝̕ͅM͊͋́̇҉͘͏҉̥̤̼̤͇͈̗͟͜͝**_

_isn't really_

**_K̵̗ͦ̉_**_**I̾̾̔̉ĽĻ̷̴̴̢̧̧̧̛̝̦̬̻̬̰̿͗ͥ͊ͥ̐̕͢͞H̷̢̡̧ͩ͘̕͏̦Ȇ̷̵̡̲͚̙͉̯̖̀͞͞͝M̏̅̾̓̏͠҉̸̴̵̦̗̩̣́̀͠ͅḀ̷̶̞̰̔̅̍͛͢͡͡͠L͆̚L̸̮͛͌͢**_

_all that bad of an idea'_

My mind goes blank, filling with static.

I look around to see the... The mirror terrors clawing at me.

**I͌'ḻ̵͈̠̞ͪ́̀̕l̵̡̢̡̬̰̭̹̮̝͓̭͇̫̿̌͐̉͑ͪ̚͠͡͝͡͝k̵̸̟̟̱͙̪̠͛̑̀͜͟i̵̡̡̖̱̝͕̯ͩ͂͑ͧͩͯ̕͘͘l̢̨̗̱͙̟̣ͪͭ͋̓͑̑ḽ̷̻̏͟͝ ̠ͤ͛̀ȃ̶̶̢̛̳̺͜͟l̼͈̘̻͓͛̑͞ļ̵̛̪̟̍ͦͧ̀͢͝ ̦̲͓͔͇̈́ͪ͢͠ô̶̥̜̹̳ͭ̓ͩ͗͗͘͢͜͜͜f ̛ͬ͊̽͌̾̃̀͏̵̶̵̜̞̤͓̝̳̻͖̼̝͛̾̀ y̷̷̢̱̗͎͈̞ͯ̀́͝o̵ͬ̓̎͢͡҉̢͏̞u̢̜̣͚͈͒̿͑̀ͯ̈́͟͟͠**

_**Y̸̫̳̣͔̖̙ͦ́̐ͯo̧ͦͭ͋͑ͩͣ҉̲̭̜͟u̵̡̨̡̧͓̘̣͚̲ͫͨ̍͐̏̑'̴̛̬̘͉̉̀̕r̡̤ͪ̄͜͠͝e̢̧͎̣̣̐͗͜ a̧͐̎ͭͫ͝͏̬͉l̑́̓҉̵̶̶͔͕̦͢l̨͇̪̔͑ͨ̒̆̋̀͞ģ̛̼̞͒̑̒͊̃̇̕͡͠ơ̠͖̝ͫ̀͡͞i̵̶̯̼̤̲͛ͭ̾̐̎͞n̛ͤͮ̓͏̫͍͉̼̲̀͜͝g̅̈͑̈̄͏̢͖́͟t̡̽ͬ͟͡҉͓͠ò̴̳ͫ̆ͬ͒͞ d̴̢̗̭ͥͥ͠i̸̟̙̙̱͒̿ė̬͙̻̯ͫ̽ͬͨ́̕ s̶̔͟҉̸̻̻̩c̸̡̡̣̑̐͛͘r̴̹ͤͯͧ̿̀͜è͕̹̭̙̼͉̾̾̇͜a̸̢̧̛̞̞̣̭̳̺ͪ͆͞m̵̘͈͈̄͊ĭ̶̡̢͇͙̞̲͗ͥͦͭ̎n̶͇͍ͭg̢̧̈́̒͂̃҉̡̘͖̱̘̀**_

I do the only thing I can do.

I lean my head back and _wail._

The lights go out and the creatures howl and leap back to cover their heads.

I don't care, I open my mouth wider and get _louder._

The mirrors begin to burst and the mirror terrors are howling and writhing on the ground in agony.

The shadows lash out and break more mirrors, glass sprays the walls and dances to the floor like rain.

As the mirrors splinter, some of the mirror terrors try to climb back into them, only to shatter before they can.

Others crumple and break on the floor.

They're all dead before long, but I can't stop _screaming._

The shadows curl around me after the mirrors and their demons are gone.

**xXx**

It takes several minutes for my screeching to die down and for my breathing to calm.

For what feels like hours I sit there, bloody and in pain, surrounded by broken mirrors as the shadows soothe me.

Slowly, I get up, not looking at anything as the shadows gently guide me to the exit.

The sun has long since gone down and I realize I'm not far from home.

I don't remember the trek home, only small flashes of soft hands and soothing chitters.

I only blink back into reality as my mother opens the door and yells in surprise.

I can't hear a word out of her mouth even though I can _see _her talking, my body aches something fierce.

I'm tired and injured and emotionally not there so I can only let out a small sniffle and collapse into her arms.

I pass out not long after that.

**xXx**

I woke up in the hospital and the doctors told me I'd have a nasty scar once it healed.

Turns out when I get an injury from once of those things, I heal back from it at a human pace.

I could only nod, for every time I tried to speak only Russian would find it's way out.

They let me out after a couple of days, they had to find someone with a translation quirk to get the full explanation.

That person also translated for the police who told me the man was in custody.

Turns out I was missing for only a day and a half.

They filled everything out and put a 'no mirrors' rule on my quirk papers.

Doc wanted to test it but my mother had refused after I started snarling out Russian curses.

**xXx**

After a while I discovered the bathroom mirror did nothing, the shadows told me it was because that was the first mirror.

I agreed and told mom when she tried to throw it out.

I bought plenty of sunglasses, turns out eye contact with mirrors is what triggers it.

It also turns out that if the mirror is smaller than a window, the mirror terrors can appear but they can't _escape._

Nearly all the mirrors in my house are either handheld mirrors or travel-size makeup mirrors.

**xXx**

Katsuki cried when I finally went over to his house, covered in bandages and wearing red tinted sunglasses.

I told him the whole story and we had a sleepover for a couple of days.

After that my morning routine was modified and I only go to the carnival if Katsuki is with me.

**xXx**

Weeks after the incident I found a cat in an alley.

It was a fully black kitten with burning acid green eyes, glaring at me from the confines of it's box.

A decent chunk of it's left ear was missing and it's tail was broken in several places.

It took nearly an hour for the cat to let me pick it up and pet it.

I took it to the vet, turns out he should be dead but he's got some kind of luck quirk.

I had laughed when I heard that, a low sound that rumbled in my chest and shook my shoulders from the force of it.

A black cat with a quirk named 'Good Luck'?

Mom agreed when I said I wanted to adopt him, I think it was because I had laughed so hard I nearly cried.

I got him a soft green collar with four leaf clovers all over it.

His name is Karma, and he's more like a Loki.

Always getting into mischief and scaring superstitious people.

But he cuddles with me at night and always gives my 'battle scars' little licks.

He and Katsuki get along like a house on fire and I fear for anyone who tries to oppose them.

* * *

**(Alright! That's it for this chapter! Poor bby Ana :(, getting all these injuries and trauma. But hey, kittens make everything better! I hope you're all being safe and staying inside! Until the next chapter! Oh and before I forget, I got a lot of inspiration for the hall of mirrors scene from the song Panic Room by Au/Ra. It seemed to fit the idea of the scene I wanted and listening to it set the mood nicely!)**


	11. Interlude: Habits

**_Sometimes, Anastasia falls back onto old habits. Ones ingrained into her very soul, the very core of her being itself, and sometimes she forgets that not all people have those habits._**

**xXx**

_S̶o̶m̶e̶t̶i̶m̶e̶s̶ ̶s̶h̶e̶ ̶p̶o̶n̶d̶e̶r̶s̶ ̶w̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶w̶o̶u̶l̶d̶ ̶h̶a̶p̶p̶e̶n̶ ̶i̶f̶ ̶s̶h̶e̶ ̶d̶e̶n̶i̶e̶d̶ ̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶i̶n̶s̶t̶i̶n̶c̶t̶s̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶m̶e̶d̶ ̶b̶y̶ ̶b̶r̶u̶t̶a̶l̶i̶t̶y̶._

When she sees someone getting their ass handed to them unfairly?

When she sees a bully knocking down a kid just for the fun of it?

When she sees kids like her, wary and jaded, flinching away from touches and harsh tones?

_She goes over and stands between them, facing violence unflinchingly.  
_  
And when she gets knocked down? When she hits the floor, body barely fazed by the hit and the impact?

(_Izuku's classmates would never tell him, but he's kind of scary. Every time he protects people and gets slammed to the ground, he gets back up. And every time he falls, it's a little bit slower, he bounces back quicker, it takes more hits to get him on the floor.** Eventually he stops going down, he dodges and swings back with all the force of a tank and it's terrifying.**_)

**She spits blood on the floor and wipes it off her wounds.**

_Her teeth are bared like she's ready to use them in a fight._

**And she gets back up.**

_Lips curled into a wretched thing, too sharp for a snarl but too harsh to be a smile._

_**"Guess you'll have to go through me first."**_

_After a blow kept her down long enough that when she came back her mother was a bloody, unrecognizable mess._

**_"Never again" she vows to her mothers battered and broken body, laying prone like an unwanted doll, chest stuttering with each breath._**

_True to her word, a blow never keeps her down and nobody has managed to knock her out since._**  
**

**_S̶h̶e̶ ̶k̶e̶e̶p̶s̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶v̶o̶w̶,̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶p̶r̶o̶m̶i̶s̶e̶ ̶b̶u̶i̶l̶t̶ ̶o̶n̶ ̶b̶r̶o̶k̶e̶n̶ ̶d̶r̶e̶a̶m̶s̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶b̶l̶o̶o̶d̶y̶ ̶k̶n̶u̶c̶k̶l̶e̶s̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶p̶r̶e̶s̶s̶e̶s̶ ̶i̶t̶ ̶i̶n̶t̶o̶ ̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶c̶h̶e̶s̶t̶,̶ ̶n̶e̶x̶t̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶a̶l̶l̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶o̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶n̶g̶s̶ ̶s̶h̶e̶ ̶r̶e̶f̶u̶s̶e̶s̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶l̶e̶t̶ ̶g̶o̶.̶_**

**xXx**

Sometimes Anastasia wakes up and just lays there, staring off into nothing as her mind plagues her with memories and phantoms and people long gone.

In the dead of night, surrounded by darkness and hidden monsters with jagged teeth and sharp eyes, with echoes of cruel words and laughs like grating glass.

She'll lay there and remember that she's Izuku now.

_S̶h̶e̶'̶l̶l̶ ̶n̶e̶v̶e̶r̶ ̶b̶e̶ ̶I̶z̶u̶k̶u̶,̶ ̶n̶o̶t̶ ̶t̶r̶u̶l̶y̶.̶_

**xXx**

Sometimes Izuku wakes up late at night and stares off into the abyss, the abyss stares back with knowing but lifeless eyes and Izuku doesn't like it.

The darkness comforts Izuku in ways he can't explain.

Katsuki was an asshole today and Izuku moved to take a hit.

_H̶e̶ ̶r̶e̶m̶e̶m̶b̶e̶r̶e̶d̶ ̶w̶e̶l̶l̶ ̶a̶i̶m̶e̶d̶ ̶b̶l̶o̶w̶s̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶s̶n̶a̶r̶l̶e̶d̶ ̶R̶u̶s̶s̶i̶a̶n̶ ̶c̶u̶r̶s̶e̶s̶.̶ ̶A̶p̶a̶t̶h̶e̶t̶i̶c̶ ̶e̶y̶e̶s̶ ̶f̶r̶o̶m̶ ̶a̶ ̶w̶o̶m̶a̶n̶ ̶w̶h̶o̶'̶s̶ ̶l̶o̶s̶t̶ ̶a̶l̶l̶ ̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶f̶i̶g̶h̶t̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶a̶ ̶m̶a̶n̶ ̶w̶i̶t̶h̶ ̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶c̶h̶i̶l̶d̶'̶s̶ ̶b̶l̶o̶o̶d̶ ̶o̶n̶ ̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶h̶a̶n̶d̶s̶.̶_

Someone will throw insults and curses and hits at Izuku and he'll take them and he _will **fight back.**_

He'll pick up the pieces of his own shattered mind and shove them back together as they cut his hands and stain the abyss a familiar crimson.

_H̶e̶'̶l̶l̶ ̶s̶n̶a̶r̶l̶,̶ ̶s̶p̶i̶t̶ ̶o̶u̶t̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶s̶a̶m̶e̶ ̶b̶l̶o̶o̶d̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶p̶l̶a̶g̶u̶e̶s̶ ̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶n̶i̶g̶h̶t̶m̶a̶r̶e̶s̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶**h̶e̶ ̶w̶i̶l̶l̶ ̶g̶e̶t̶ ̶b̶a̶c̶k̶ ̶u̶p̶.̶**_

Nothing will keep him down.

**_N̵̨̡̛̲̣̲͖̖̮̘̙̓̾̓̄͘e̺̮̫͗̿͒v̬̬̼̾ͩͦeͫr͔̠̪̭̅̽̉̑ ag̴̨̟͓̲̓͒͊͊a̴͓̩̒̀̿̊̽̀̕̕͠ȋ̷͙͍͉̱̠͇̺̫͕̟n̵̨͓͕̤̱͇̭̠̿̉̒͐͘._**

_Lips curled into a taunting smirk, head titled slightly, eyes blazing, and an eyebrow cocked in challenge._

_**"𝔾𝕦𝕖𝕤𝕤 𝕪𝕠𝕦'𝕝𝕝 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕥𝕠 𝕘𝕠 𝕥𝕙𝕣𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙 𝕞𝕖 𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕤𝕥 𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕟, 𝕖𝕙?"**_

_T̶h̶e̶y̶ ̶s̶t̶o̶p̶ ̶t̶r̶y̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶g̶e̶t̶ ̶h̶i̶m̶ ̶d̶o̶w̶n̶ ̶a̶f̶t̶e̶r̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶,̶ ̶w̶h̶e̶n̶ ̶h̶e̶ ̶s̶h̶i̶e̶l̶d̶s̶ ̶o̶r̶ ̶s̶n̶a̶r̶l̶s̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶y̶ ̶f̶r̶e̶e̶z̶e̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶t̶e̶a̶r̶ ̶o̶f̶f̶._

Izuku learns he likes this development.

**xXx**

Izuku's eyes fascinate several people in his life, including him at times. He's got heterochromia and tapetum lucidum, flashlights and photos make him look like a demon and people sometimes gush over his eyes mismatched colors.

However, his eyes also scare the ever-loving shit out of people sometimes.

Like that hiking trip when Katsuki wanted to check out the woods at night, lost Izuku for a full minute, then shined the light in his face?

Suffice to say Katsuki's flashlight didn't survive the explosion that followed when Izuku's eyes glowed.

Izuku laughed all the way back to their tents because no matter how snappy Katsuki got, his hands were still shaking.

_That was a fun spring break during second grade._

But, due to his eyes, Izuku developed a strange tick.

When he wants to creep people out or intimidate them, he'll tilt his head so the light hits his eyes _just right._

It really makes him all the more eerie considering the fact that his eyes look like they glow, or his pupils have suddenly turned red during a picture or video.

Unfortunately, this tick appears nearly as often as Izuku brushing a hand through his hair, even if just to attempt to smooth it down a little.

_T̶h̶e̶i̶r̶ ̶f̶i̶f̶t̶h̶ ̶g̶r̶a̶d̶e̶ ̶t̶e̶a̶c̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶s̶t̶i̶l̶l̶ ̶c̶a̶n̶'̶t̶ ̶m̶e̶e̶t̶ ̶I̶z̶u̶k̶u̶'̶s̶ ̶e̶y̶e̶s̶ ̶a̶f̶t̶e̶r̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶y̶ ̶m̶a̶d̶e̶ ̶a̶ ̶h̶a̶r̶s̶h̶ ̶j̶a̶b̶ ̶a̶t̶ ̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶m̶o̶t̶h̶e̶r̶s̶ ̶p̶a̶r̶e̶n̶t̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶s̶k̶i̶l̶l̶s̶.̶ ̶K̶a̶t̶s̶u̶k̶i̶ ̶s̶n̶i̶c̶k̶e̶r̶s̶ ̶q̶u̶i̶e̶t̶l̶y̶ ̶e̶v̶e̶r̶y̶ ̶t̶i̶m̶e̶ ̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶t̶e̶a̶c̶h̶e̶r̶ ̶c̶o̶w̶s̶ ̶a̶w̶a̶y̶ ̶f̶r̶o̶m̶ ̶D̶e̶k̶u̶'̶s̶ ̶g̶a̶z̶e̶ ̶b̶e̶c̶a̶u̶s̶e̶ ̶h̶o̶n̶e̶s̶t̶l̶y̶,̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶y̶ ̶h̶a̶d̶ ̶i̶t̶ ̶c̶o̶m̶i̶n̶g̶,̶ ̶A̶u̶n̶t̶i̶e̶ ̶I̶n̶k̶o̶ ̶i̶s̶ ̶**t̶h̶e̶ ̶b̶e̶s̶t̶.̶**_

**xXx**

Now, Izuku knew he wasn't quite human, just as he hadn't been human when he was Anastasia.

Because Anastasia remembers eating nightshade to taste the sweetness and sticking forks into outlets to feel a pleasant little buzz across her skin.

She remembers pointed nails, too sharp teeth, eerie eyes, and wide smiles that curved upwards a _little _too far for it to be natural.

Her injuries never lasted and her bones rarely broke, pain was fickle and rarely occurred and death was always brushing fond kisses along her cheekbones.

Anastasia never quite knew what she was, her mother's eyes grew haunted when she saw Anastasia eating poisonous plants simply because she liked the taste and her father's smile had a knowing edge that he refused to explain.

She didn't think that oddness would follow her into her second life but it did.

Katsuki's burns, whether accidental or on purpose, never lasted the trek home and bruises and cuts were gone by the time Izuku reached the nurse's office.

Of course, she could've written it off as her quirk but that would entail having to explain it and that was no fun.

So when Inko catches Izuku eating colorful plants and strange foods and powerful spices she worries until she realizes it doesn't affect her baby so she lets it go.

Maybe one day someone will find out why Izuku eats peanut bitter, ghost pepper paste, and nightshade mixed together out of a jar, but today is not that day.

Katsuki doesn't mind Izuku's oddness, he finds it funny when people give Izuku weird looks for his food tastes and strange concoctions he mixed up.

Katsuki also knows not to eat Izuku's food unless he offers it, he learned when he ate the abomination that was a peanut butter and ghost pepper paste sandwich with kimchi and scrambled eggs in the middle on toasted bread.

_H̶e̶ ̶t̶o̶t̶a̶l̶l̶y̶ ̶d̶i̶d̶n̶'̶t̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶n̶k̶ ̶i̶t̶ ̶w̶a̶s̶ ̶s̶o̶m̶e̶ ̶w̶e̶i̶r̶d̶ ̶p̶e̶a̶n̶u̶t̶ ̶b̶u̶t̶t̶e̶r̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶j̶e̶l̶l̶y̶ ̶s̶a̶n̶d̶w̶i̶c̶h̶ ̶w̶i̶t̶h̶ ̶m̶a̶r̶s̶h̶m̶a̶l̶l̶o̶w̶ ̶f̶l̶u̶f̶f̶.̶ ̶**S̶T̶O̶P̶ ̶L̶A̶U̶G̶H̶I̶N̶G̶ ̶I̶Z̶U̶K̶U̶ ̶Y̶O̶U̶ ̶L̶I̶T̶T̶L̶E̶ ̶S̶H̶I̶T̶!̶**_

Unfortunately, a habit formed from the Sandwich Incident and now Izuku has to label his creations with sticky notes or stickers.

If it's safe to eat, it will either say as much or have flower stickers on it. If it isn't safe to eat, it will say _'Danger'_ and have radioactive stickers on it, courtesy of Katsuki.

He even has designated containers, bento boxes, utensils, and cloths for his more dangerous foods, they're all pastels and soft colors because Izuku may have died for irony in a past life, but he positively _revels _for it in this one.

**xXx**

Carrying around a paper parasol became a habit for Izuku.

For several reasons:

1\. It's useful to always have one on hand

2\. They block the sun

3\. They're adorable

4\. They're surprisingly useful in a fight

Izuku has four parasols so far.

The first one is from Katsuki, with crows and red spider lilies adorning the top, made of dark walnut wood and a soft but durable, black handle.

The second one is from his mother, a beautiful black parasol with red hibiscuses and pink dahlias on the top of it, it's also reinforced with tungsten carbide.

He uses this parasol the most for both sun protection and whacking Katsuki over the head when he gets to overzealous.

The third is also from Katsuki, a beautifully made gold alloy parasol with sunset orange paper adorned with phoenix and tiger lily designs.

It's been dubbed the 'summer parasol' and is often used in hot weather.

In fact, Katsuki has gotten into the habit of walking shoulder to shoulder with Izuku on hot or sunny days so he can have some shade.

_̶I̶t̶'̶s̶ ̶t̶o̶t̶a̶l̶l̶y̶ ̶n̶o̶t̶ ̶b̶e̶c̶a̶u̶s̶e̶ ̶I̶z̶u̶k̶u̶ ̶s̶m̶e̶l̶l̶s̶ ̶l̶i̶k̶e̶ ̶a̶p̶p̶l̶e̶ ̶b̶l̶o̶s̶s̶o̶m̶s̶,̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶f̶r̶o̶s̶t̶,̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶a̶u̶t̶u̶m̶n̶ ̶w̶o̶o̶d̶s̶,̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶m̶a̶n̶g̶o̶s̶.̶ ̶I̶t̶'̶s̶ ̶n̶o̶t̶ ̶b̶e̶c̶a̶u̶s̶e̶ ̶I̶z̶u̶k̶u̶ ̶s̶m̶e̶l̶l̶s̶ ̶l̶i̶k̶e̶ ̶**h̶o̶m̶e̶,**̶ ̶n̶o̶t̶ ̶a̶t̶ ̶a̶l̶l̶.̶̀_

The last parasol is made of steel alloy, with a retractable blade at the handle.

It's dark purple with star gazers and glow in the dark galaxies strewn over it, constellations etched into the metal with golden accents.

Sakuko-sensei gave it to Izuku for his birthday, and even had his husband upgrade it for UA.

The star umbrella was then given a flashlight at the top, and the handle comes off as a detachable taser.

It's by far the most used parasol Izuku owns in terms of daily use _and_ fighting use.

**xXx**

Inko never really noticed that her little Izuku had a slight accent until Mitsuki pointed it out.

After listening closely when Izuku was talking, she realized Mitsuki was right.

She knew her sweet baby boy sometimes rambled on in a foreign language when he got excited or emotional.

Or when he was sleepy or stressed that strange accent thickened to the point his words were difficult to decipher.

Inko didn't mind, sure her son was a little bit odd and she didn't quite know where the accent or fluentness in foreign languages came from but he was _her _baby and she loved him no matter what.

Even if he worried her sometimes, coming home with haunted eyes or a thunderous expression and an injured but grinning Katsuki in tow.

She'll never forget the day where Izuku went missing for a day and a half only to came home with large claw marks down his back and shoulder, bleeding profusely and face twisted in pain.

Inko swears her heart stopped beating for a few seconds because _why was her baby in pain? _

_**Who hurt her son so bad it overrode his mutation? **_

_**Who hurt her son?**_

_**H͒̃͆̑͒̚͘͢͏̙̙̜̘o̡ͥ͜͏̩̯̼̭͓͍̯͜w̯̪̘̞͇̤͔͗͟͠ ̑͋ͭ҉͞҉̶͠͏̰̪̰̯͓̭̦ͅd̶̶̵̨͍͔̝ͨ͟a̽r̸̨̙̫͇͎̣̜̿͒͛͑ͬ͡ẹ̴̢̟̩̱̬̾̓ͫͫ͋̾ͦ͜ ̶̨̡ͭͣ̀͑̎͒̄ͣ͜҉̧̥̕͢t̶̰ͩͣ̉̊̾ͪ́ͯ͢h̶̸̙ͥ̀͘e̶̒ͥͨ̚҉̶̛͍̲̣̤̠̞͢y̜̘͔͂̏̎̉͘͘.**_

After a trip to the hospital and a low explanation in stilted, but eligible Japanese, she removed most of the mirrors from her house.

The bathroom mirror is the only one that stayed and only because Izuku assured her, albeit he was just as confused, that the bathroom mirror was fine.

Weeks later she could finally relax because Izuku's accent had finally began to disperse and the dark circles that nearly looked like bruises had lightened up to normal.

After that Izuku was still wary of mirrors, only using the one in the bathroom for the minimal time necessary and wearing sunglasses when he left the house to make sure it wouldn't happen again.

Izuku wore contacts to dance class and had an entire drawer full of sunglasses in different shapes, styles, and colors.

Inko didn't mind that Izuku ate poisons or that he didn't like being in the car or that he had a more cynical personality than all his classmates.

Inko didn't mind that Izuku wore clothing from both the girls and boys section, dancing in crop tops and leggings and wearing makeup when he needed confidence.

Or that Izuku had nightmares that left him awake for hours.

Nor did she mind his aversion to the sun or his preference for dark colors.

Inko didn't care that Izuku was jaded, all sharp edges and raspy Russian when he got emotional.

Izuku was her precious baby boy and she loved him with all her heart, no matter how creepy or wrong other people said he was.

To Inko, Izuku was beautiful and bright for all his gruff voice and blunt demeanor.

Inko loved her darling little boy, no matter what.

* * *

_**(I hope you guys liked the interlude! I enjoyed writing it and it's fun to give out little hints, snippets, or headcanons that aren't really pointed out in the story all that much. I might write some more as the story progresses, but I hope this tides you over until the next chapter!)**_


	12. Chapter 10: The Peak Of The Summit

**(This chapter contains mentions of blood, violence, some PTSD, and some flashbacks so tread with a little caution! I hope you enjoy this chapter regardless! My wifi went out for a little and I still have some writers block so sorry about the (super) late chapter! I had to keep coming back to this chapter because it always seemed a little off but I decided to publish it anyway because if I just kept revising it then this story wasn't going to get anywhere.)**

_'Thoughts'_

**{Special Actions}**

_**~Memories~**_

_"Singing"_

'Talking in JSL, ASL, or just Signing in general'

**"Speaking in Russian"***

***(Some words will still be in Russian simply because I like the way it looks. Those words will also be in italics, confusing I know.**

Anastasia hits an even number, builds some things, sees the peak of the summit, gets into yet _another _fight, destroys a bathroom, leans _even more_ about her quirk, and we get to find out how she got her school-wide moniker.

* * *

I'm starting to think God is out to get me.

From the trauma, to the kidnapping, and now I'm in a fight with upperclassman?

God is trying to either nerf me or vibe check me and I'm not too keen on finding out which of those is the truth.

Personally, I'd like to assume God is testing me.

I don't know what for or why, but I'd like to think that I'm passing.

Aside from my attempted ass kicking turned into a smackdown courtesy of moi, I made Katsuki cry.

... I should probably back up a little bit.

**xXx**

My eighth birthday passed with little fanfare.

Katsuki and I put powder on his hands to make colored explosions.

He tried to mash my face into the grass after I told him he now earned the nickname 'Firecracker.'

We had peach cheesecake and mom got me rollerblades.

Katsuki shoved some hiking gear into my arms and told me we were going to go hiking eventually.

So that happened.

**xXx**

In other news, I've now decided to investigate the Bakugou household.

Like, **how** do you not notice your child is missing for days at a time?

I mean, my mom certainly noticed, but I've got a million and one different ways to redirect the conversation.

It's not like I'm lying!

I'm telling the truth... Just with less details.

For instance, when Katsuki and I were in the forest after another escape and I had to clean off in the river.

Then, when back-up showed up I fell into the river, taking Katsuki with me and getting washed downstream.

When mom asked, I told her we fell into the river and that was that.

We did fall into the river, I just didn't deign to tell her that we fell in because one man had a gun quirk and, when I went down, my raptor brain panicked and went _grab._

Katsuki has yet to learn this skill but he has started to pick up on it since it _technically_ isn't lying and he **loathes** lying.

Alright, so maybe I'm doing this in preparation for lie detector quirks.

But the cops can't prove anything, so there.

**xXx**

Now, I put the Bakugou household investigation, BHI for short, on hold while I help Katsuki find an outlet for his anger.

I've decided on the drums, and I will drag Katsuki into those music lessons if I have to.

But, surprisingly, I didn't have to.

After talking with Aunt Miki and Uncle Suru, they both agreed and Katsuki was on board from the beginning.

Of course, in true Katsuki fashion, when he learned I was going for guitar he loudly exclaimed drums were better.

So now we have semi-aggressive jam out sessions and music lessons after school.

It's fun up until Katsuki almost blows up his drumsticks.

During drum lessons I also realized that Katsuki seems to have some trouble hearing things.

It sure as hell gave all the yelling and loud noises some context.

How did I find out?

Well... Turns out that aside from Katsuki's nitroglycerin sweat being a mutation.

Yeah, his quirk isn't sweating, it's simply igniting the sweat.

Anyway, his mutation also extends to his ears, muffling his hearing as a defense mechanism against his quirk.

He's hard of hearing, and he'll need hearing aids real soon because as his quirk gets stronger so does his mutation.

So, basically, the bigger he can make his explosions, the more his hearing deteriorates or grows muffled due to his mutation growing stronger.

It's confusing and the gist of it all is: Katsuki now needs specialized quirk-proof hearing aids.

Unfortunately, the hearing aids he got were simple and he constantly had to adjust them when he used his quirk and if he forgot he was **_not_**** happy.**

I convinced him to let me tinker with and paint them since they were so glaringly obvious with their shiny white exterior.

After some trial and error, I managed to upgrade and paint them.

_'If that punk doesn't appreciate these, I'm throwing them at him will every ounce of force I can muster'_

**xXx**

I finally finished the hearing aids, packing them in a small orange box with a forest green bow.

I sigh and crack my back, checking the clock.

_'Wow, six in the afternoon already? I've been touching these up since ten in the morning'_

I shrug and slip out of my room, leaving the little box on my bed.

I pass by Karma in the hallway and pick him up on my venture, petting him languidly.

I soon reach the kitchen where mom is humming and cutting up some vegetables.

"Hey mom, can Katsuki come over?" I ask as I walk into the kitchen.

Mom jumps a little and turns to me with a smile, setting down her knife and sending a little wink to Karma.

I give Karma a little kiss on the head in thanks for not letting mom slice her finger like she would've had he not intervened, before setting him down.

"Sure honey, why don't you invite him over for dinner as well? I know Mitsuki is working late and Masaru is out right now." Mom chirps.

"Okay, I'll be right back." I say over my shoulder as I go over to the door and put on my black sneakers.

Karma darts off into the apartment, probably off to go find something else to mess with.

_'I hope that little fuck doesn't use his quirk to steal my clothes again, that was a disaster'_

I walk out of the apartment and over to the door next to ours.

I knock loudly, in a rhythm, so Katsuki knows it's me.

_Tap-pause-tap-tap-pause-tap-tap-tap-pause-tap._

I wait calmly, shadows curling around my ankles before I hear shuffling.

The door opens and Katsuki's disgruntled face greets me.

"What the fuck're you doing here?" Katsuki huffs like the little edgy ball of anger he is.

"I'm snatching you away for dinner at my house." I deadpan.

"Oh, alright, let me go put on my shoes and grab the house keys." Katsuki mumbles, used to my oddness, before he closes the door.

I wait once more, after a minute or so Katsuki slips back out of his apartment and slides next to me.

We walk side by side, shoulders brushing and lightly shoving each other for a few minutes.

I hum and walk him over to our door, turning the knob and letting us both in.

We slip off our shoes and mom greets Katsuki from the kitchen as I finish putting on my panda slippers.

I snicker at his stumbled reply before leading him down the hallway, Karma padding over and winding between his legs with every step.

"Hey brat." Katsuki greets Karma, who chirps in reply and rubs his face against Katsuki's leg.

Katsuki huffs and kneels down to pet Karma, which makes him purr loud enough for Katsuki to hear it with his shitty hearing aids.

I open the door and walk into my room, Katsuki closing the door behind him, reluctantly leaving Karma in the hallway.

Karma yowls and protests at being pulled away from his favorite person, but the shadows reassure him it's for good reason and he eventually quiets down.

Katsuki waltzes into my room like he owns it, which isn't anything new.

But what is new, is how he pauses upon seeing the little box on my bed.

"The fuck is this?" Katsuki asks, glancing at me before walking over and picking up the box.

"A present, you little goblin." I roll my eyes, walking over and hopping onto my bed.

"For me?" Katsuki gives me a suspicious look. "What'd you do to it?"

"Oh my god." I groan, flopping back on my bed. "You give someone a glitter bomb in a box **ONE TIME** and suddenly _every _present is a bomb."

"Fuck off nerd! I was coughing up glitter for 2 days! Two **fucking **_days_ Izuku." Katsuki spits back at me.

"Oh can it Sparky, it was fucking funny. Now get over here and sit." I sit up, and cross my legs Indian style, patting the bed next to me.

Katsuki grumbles something under his breath before climbing onto my bed and sitting next to me, thighs touching and knee pressed to mine.

I don't deign to mention it, we're both kind of touch starved.

That, and we both have the emotional range of a dead sea-sponge so bringing it up would not be a fun conversation.

"So what is it?" Katsuki asks, turning the present over in his hands.

"Open it and find out." I deadpan.

Katsuki shoves me and I elbow him in the ribs in retaliation.

"Just open it." I hiss, putting an end to our impromptu shoving session.

"Fine!" Katsuki hisses back, giving me one last light shove before he undoes the little green bow on top of the box.

I wait in expectant silence, the sounds of Katsuki tearing pastel orange wrapping paper and our breathing is all that fills the air.

Finally, he gets all the wrapping paper off and he gives me one more confused look.

I nod encouragingly and he opens the box and freezes.

Katsuki examines the contents of the box before turning to me with a little half-grin, the one that shows me he's surprised but still happy.

"This is the best fucking present ever." Katsuki's voice cracks a little as he leans back and I marvel for a second at the fondness that swells in my chest for him.

"Well I hope so considering the fact that I made them, why don't you put them in and I'll tell you about 'em?" I offer excitedly.

Katsuki nods and slips out his old hearing aids, sliding the new ones into his ears.

They match his skin tone perfectly and pride swells in my chest.

If I wasn't looking hard enough or if I was farther away, or you know _if I didn't literally just watch him put the damn things in_ I probably wouldn't have known they were there.

"Woah..." Katsuki breathes, looking around the room. "I... I can hear your mom making food in the kitchen."

I feel a grin force my lips upwards, the shadows crowing in triumph at my victory.

"Yeah, your old hearing aids were shit and no best friend of mine is walking around in them." I wink at him, Katsuki turns back to me with fresh tears in his eyes.

Silence reigns for several seconds and I begin to wonder if maybe I should've gotten him something else.

_'Shit, are the settings wrong? Did I fuck them up somehow? Are all the sounds wonky or something? Did something happen earlier and I just made it worse? Shit fuckfu**ckfuck-**'_

My thoughts are cut off by Katsuki dropping the empty box on my bed and turning to pull me into a harsh hug.

Katsuki rests his head in the crook of my neck, thin arms curled around my lower back tightly.

I splutter for a second, Katsuki's hair poking into my mouth, before slowly moving my arms to wrap around his waist.

Katsuki sniffles a little and I try to pull back but he doesn't budge.

_'Shit... Well I can only hope those are happy tears but still... My fucking dumbass, I can't believe I fucking made him cry! I should let Karma in here so he can avenge Katsuki's emotions or some shit'_

I silently mull over my idiocy as I raise one of my hands and rake it through his hair.

It's surprisingly soft despite it's spikey nature, it smells faintly of some rustic woodsy smell alongside the natural smell of smoking marshmallows and burnt sugar I've come to associate with Katsuki.

We sit there for a while, Katsuki sniffling into my neck, hugging me tightly as I softly pet him and rest my cheek gently on his mane of fluff.

He eventually pulls back, tears no longer brimming his eyes.

"I love them." Katsuki whispers.

"Good, because that's not all they do. Feel those dials on the side?" Katsuki reaches a hand up and nods once he does. "You can dial the sensitivity up or down, and you won't have to touch it when you use your quirk."

"Really?" He grins, giving me an impressed look that kind of makes me want to puff my chest out like an arrogant bird.

"Yeah! Turns out when you use your quirk, a certain set of muscles moves, including some behind your ears due to your mutation. So, these babies will detect the muscle flexing and automatically muffle the noise. And, you don't have to turn them back on because once that muscle stops flexing they return to whatever default settings you choose!" I ramble on for a moment, Katsuki soaking in the information like a sponge.

"How do I choose the default?" He asks, glancing at his hands in a way that tells me he wants to test out their new functions as soon as possible.

"You turn the dial to whatever you want on both ears, then press it in until it does a little beep and you're all set." I smile, feeling relieved and proud Katsuki is enjoying his present.

Katsuki gives me a quick hug and does exactly that, playing with the dials a little before setting the default with a little _beep_.

"What if they get damaged or something?" Katsuki suddenly asks.

"Well, my mom has a friend in the support department and he sent me some materials. So those hearing aids are fire proof, water proof, wind proof, explosion proof, and basically they're everything proof. So, don't worry about breaking them easily." I chirp, happy to reveal one of my favorite aspects of the hearing aids. "He also helped me make them, so if you need an upgrade or need to make adjustments I can call him."

"You really prepared for everything didn't you?" Katsuki snickers, voice teasing.

"Of course I did, I'm an anxious bitch by nature." I sniff haughtily, lips twitching as I try not to laugh.

Katsuki has no such reserve and promptly bursts into cackles.

I sigh fondly and roll my eyes, getting up and opening the door.

"I'm gonna let Karma in, wanna play some games?" I ask as Karma scampers into the room to ram into Katsuki, who then rakes his hands through Karma's fur.

"Fuck yeah, get ready to have your ass handed to you." Katsuki's grin was all confidence and eyes brimming with challenge as Karma settles on his lap.

"Oh we'll see about that Firecracker." I smirk back, shuffling over to turn the game console on and handing Katsuki a controller.

**xXx**

Mom bought me some rollerblades for my birthday and I had forgotten about them up until this point.

They're sleek and black, with matching green and blue lightning bolts on each skate and four black wheels with dark purple rubber brakes on the back.

Upon rediscovering them, I promptly skated around town for several hours.

My legs burned something fierce and I nearly regretted it the next morning.

_Nearly._

Not enough to stop though.

After getting used to them, my mom joked that I was a speed demon after she witnessed me all but sail around the block.

I usually set them next to my shoes, they make store runs quick and easy.

During one of my escapades outside of the house I realized that just rollerblading around wasn't going to cut it.

If I was going to be a hero I needed to be able to fly through my environment like I've got wings.

So my next goal was parkour.

Alright, maybe I'm an adrenaline junkie, sue me.

If I wasn't zooming around town on the ground, I was usually scaling brick buildings and hopping over alleys or hauling myself onto fire escapes and kicking off dumpsters to swing myself up the railings of said fire escapes.

One fateful night I decided I wanted to **fly**.

And _fly I did._

**xXx**

The sun was just setting when I told my mom I was going on a little escapade, kissing her cheek and grabbing the old polaroid camera we had found in some boxes a week prior.

Mom told me it was old and probably only had a few photos left in it, but I still put in a new cartridge and photo paper regardless.

I slipped out of the house, camera round my neck and shadows swirling around my ankles.

As I walk down the sidewalk I focus on the tallest building in town, a simple skyscraper not too far off.

The sun is setting and people are milling around, either on their way home or leaving for outings.

I ignore them and duck into an alley, kicking off the dumpster and banging my elbows against the fire escape as I grab onto it.

"Better not break this fucking camera, I swear." I mutter to myself as I continue my trek up the fire escape, disregarding the stairs for hauling my way up by the railings.

After finally making it to the roof I check the camera again and breathe a sigh of relief at seeing it's in fine shape.

The sun scatters rays of orange and yellow across the roof and I glance at the sky to see indigo mixing with reds like fire, pink staining the clouds, and blue crawling upwards like clawed hands.

I feel a grin take over my face, teeth sharp in the face of adrenaline beginning to set in.

Ripping my eyes away from the smattering of colors in the sky I begin to dash across the rooftop, leaping over an alley, shoes pounding against the new roof.

The next building is taller so I leap and throw the camera over my shoulder so it thumps against my back as I dig my fingers into the edge of the roof and swing myself onto it.

Gravel crunches under my feet as I leap over a large fan, shadows flickering in the edges of my vision playfully.

"Oh it's _on_." I smile as the shadows pull ahead of me challengingly, I speed up and leap over them with a taunting cackle.

We race to the skyscraper, laughing and gaining leads on each other only to lose them at the next leap or tumble.

Eventually, we reach the skyscraper and I begin to haul my way upwards, feet finding grooves in grey bricks, fingers digging into protrusions made by window sills.

I reach the roof with a triumphant cackle, people are scarce and city lights are beginning to glow.

"It's show time." I whisper to the shadows as I near the edge of the building by the alley.

The shadows trill, whispering back in crackles of static and overlapping voices in gravelly tones as I step backwards.

With a long sigh I break into a sprint, leaping off the edge of the building, hidden away from prying eyes as I plummet towards the earth.

I keep a firm hold on the camera, shadows curling out like smoke as the ground nears.

I plunge into darkness, easily skating to a nearby patch of trees, a small forest in an abandoned park just around the corner.

I scuff my heel twice, flying back through the air as I ready the camera, lens pointed at my face.

Weightlessness takes over my body as I raise a hand out to the sun behind me, presenting the sight like a dragon showing off it's hoard.

I click the shutter.

The sun dances in my eyes but I don't blink, smiling towards the camera as it takes the picture seconds before I begin to descend.

I hold the camera carefully as the shadows help me leap from tree to tree before I land in a crouch in the forest, grass crushed underneath my dark purple sneakers.

The camera spits out the picture and I carefully shake it.

The picture slowly comes into focus after a minute or so and I can only stare at it.

_'It's perfect.'_

The sunset is behind me, my hand reaching out to it like an offering, my face is contrasted sharply with dark shadows and sunshine. The black of my t-shirt is bathed in light, my torso cut off just before my hip, tan skin peeking from the bottom of the photo where my shirt rode up a little.

The dying light of the sun is shining on my face, coating it in golden hues, my pupils are gleaming and my eyes look like gems.

_That's totally not a vain thought, **not at all**_

My hair is sheened a dark green, trees behind me in similar shades, and the smattering of freckles on my face visible.

Teeth glinting white like pearls, lips pulled taunt as my crooked grin stares back at me, lopsided in a way that makes the sharpness of my teeth blatant.

The sky is like a watercolor painting, stars shining above me, clouds floating across the sky as it bleeds red onto darkening clouds, pinks and oranges swirling together.

The stars peek through periwinkle and sapphire, gleaming like sharp teeth bared in a challenge. The sun is lowering and the moon is rising, and I can only stare at the photo that perfectly captured the thrill of flying.

I carefully pull a pen out of my pocket and sign the bottom of the polaroid, putting the date, and my name.

I scrawl a quick title on the bottom before waving it to let it dry for a few seconds.

I jog home, making it there barely before the moon fully rises, grinning the entire time.

**xXx**

Mom fussed over my late arrival but upon seeing the photo she was appeased.

I did get scolded for public quirk use but mom helped me put the polaroid in a frame regardless.

I set it on my nightstand, glancing at it whenever I can.

_'The peak of the summit, how fitting'_ I think amusedly as I read the title on the bottom of the photo as I button up my uniform.

**xXx**

School was a boring affair that I wish I wasn't obligated to attend.

I had better things to do than learn how to multiply fractions and shit.

Alas.

The teacher seems out to get me but every time I answer correctly her face does this funny little twitch like she's trying not to yell and honestly I really can't help myself.

I turned to Katsuki and sent a little shadows tendril to smack his ankle.

He turned to me, looking slightly irritated but I grin and raise my hands so he can see them.

'This class is b-o-r-i-n-g.' I sign carefully, finger-spelling the last word.

Considering the fact that Katsuki and I have only been learning it for a couple of months, I'd like to think we're rather good at it.

Katsuki lights up and grins at me.

'It is! Can't wait for today to be over.' He signs back.

'Want to get soda after school?' I ask, making sure the teacher isn't looking.

'Can't, going to doctor a-p-p-o-i-n-t-m-e-n-t.' Katsuki responds, tapping his ears and sending me a sullen look.

'That's fine, tomorrow then?' I hide my disappointment in carefully made signs.

Katsuki nods and gives me a thumbs up.

We turn back to the teacher before she can catch us, sometimes signing curse words to each other to help the day go by a little faster.

**xXx**

It was the end of the day, Katsuki left before me so he wouldn't miss his ride.

I stayed back, packing my bag slowly in the hopes that I might be able to get some bubble tea on the way home.

The shadows whispered to me about new experiments and pretty flowers they found in the school garden.

As I stepped out of the classroom, I noticed a group of five boys lingering near the lockers.

They're older than I am, barely preteens, with lanky limbs and voices that crack with every obnoxious bout of laughter.

_'Why are they here?'_

The shadows seem displeased by their appearance, no longer giggling about pastel hydrangeas in the green house.

Now they were hissing softly, coiling around my feet to brush the bone jutting out of my ankles in a silent question to be careful.

I realize it during my trek down the hallway, listening to their footsteps behind me.

_'Oh yeah, those are the group of kids that tried to fight me and Katsuki after school a couple of weeks ago...'_

As I walk I hear a set of footsteps speed up behind me.

_'Are they trying to corner me for another fight?'_

As always, the universe loves proving me right at the worst possible times and I duck at the shadows loud screech, just in time for a crystal encased fist to sail past my head.

"Oi! What the fuck?" I snap at them, sliding backwards as the kid with the crystal quirk readies himself for another blow.

The ringleader sneers at me, earring catching in the light as he clicks his tongue and more goons stride towards me.

_'What the hell is this bullshit!? I'm only fucking **eight**! What kind of tom-fuckery is this? Whenever I die again I am **so **going to give whoever sent me here a piece of my mind'_

I slide out of the way for a couple more blows but one of them grabs me by my bag and all but yeets me into the lockers like an empty water bottle.

I wheeze in discomfort, wind knocked out of me and vision blacked out for a second as my grip on my bag slackens.

_'Fuck, what the **hell** kind of steroids do 12 year olds even take these days!?'_

During my disorientation, two of the bigger boys lock my arms with theirs and all but drag me down the hallway.

The shadows snarl and hiss, spitting vitriol so fierce it nearly burns.

My head spins in a way that hasn't happened since I was five and it unsettles me.

_'Oh yeah, that one kid had a quirk that basically puts you on drugs. **Shit** why is the universe so hellbent on making me suffer?'_

I blink but the floor looks blurry and my mind is filled with cotton. My thoughts are like fog and anything coherent slips through my fingers like fine grains of sand.

I hear a door open and I turn sluggishly to see bathroom stalls.

_'Oh fuck there are mirrors here and I don't have any contacts in'_

I hear someone talking but I'm too focused on trying to orient myself.

The first blow catches me off guard and my head snaps to the side.

"The fuck?" I slur, mind turning to mush as laughter rings in my ears.

I can't hear the shadows at all, the cool radiator in the bathroom digs into my back uncomfortably.

More blows rain down on my face and ribcage, flashes of vivid r̶u̶s̶s̶i̶a̶n̶ blue eyes dance behind my eyelids.

One particularly hard blow to my jaw has me tasting iron, panic swells in my chest and _oh**godh̶o̶w̶d̶i̶d̶h̶e̶f̶i̶n̶d̶m̶e̶. **_

**ḩ̷͙͉̱̫͔̘ͪ̊ͧ̾ͩ̚͡o̵̤̲̓̔͡w ̡̧̺̣ͩ̾ͦ̈́̃̕iͫͩ͊҉̶̥̠͔̫S̷̴̤̫̳͉͈͍̍ ̷̢̧̠͓́͘͝͠H̷͚ͯ͝͠͡E̵̴̸̩̱͈͔ͨ͑͟͟͞ ̅͌̚͏̨͓̲̬͍̣́͜H̷͈̭̜̝̙͌̀E̡̖͎͆̅͛̇͛RĘ̑̎͝҉͎͘**

_**H̅̉̅̑͏̶̶҉̦͓̙̜̕͞EŠ̽͑̉҉̴̷̥̫͈̣̼̝͟͞G̷͉̟̟̤̰ͩƠ͕̗̑͆͘IN̴̢̳̖̻̺̬̈́̿GT̸̢̡ͥ̿͢҉̠̗̮̯̬Ǫ̵͔͓͑̽̑͆ͪ͜͡K̪̪͎ͯ͡ͅIL̷̺̾̾̍͜Lͦ̊̀͝͠҉̶̢̯̰M̨̱̗̗̺͍ͯͭ͛͘E̐ͧ҉̢̝̫̖̥̠͖͠͠͝**_

_**Iͯͮ̇ͣͪ̐͝҉̜̫̤͙͍͕̦̭'̝̬̫͈͖̠̮̣̐̓́ͧ́ͅM̵ͫ͌͢͝͏͇̹͉̩̤̞̭̲͡͝ͅG̨̣̥̭͕̘͈͙ͯ͊ͦͅO̸̴̩̲̹̅̉̕͢ͅN̡NAD̶͈̭̭̩͍̉͐͢͢͡͞͞I̷̸̸͈̊͒̀̕͘͘̕͜Ë̷̷̢͙́̏̈́͞**_

**N̎҉҉͖̙͉O̗̹͛ͫ͛͢͡**

_N̒̿̿͆O̵̿̒̀̀͘̕҉̴̡̗̝͓̫̠̕͟͟͡T̶̢̛͚̖͎̙̼͓͉̦͚̘̙͙̑͘͢͟͞͞ ̆͏҉҉̫͎̟͔͍͟A̷͕̘͇̤̅͒͌́͢͠G̡̢̤̯̬̘͈͚̥͕̱̞̗̩̐̉́A̴̶̒ͩ̓̄͊̑̒̉̍̃̀͘͜͢͏̨͏͟͏̯̼̙͈͟I̸̡̾̿͗̄̈́͛̃̀̃ͭ͒̀̀͠͝҉̢̩͎͖͓̱̬͉̀͘ͅŇ͋̋̑̚_

**_N̴̶̶̷̡̹̬͙̠͚̦̹ͩͣͯ̊̃͆ͧ̆ͥ̑͐̓̚͜͞ͅȆ̷̢̱̬̤ͯͪ̐̿ͪ͒͑̋̐̌͞͡҉̢͎̠͚̙̀́͜͠V̉̊̃̓̆͗ͬ͗͢͏̸̨͚̣̩͔ͪ̊́́ͧͯ̂͡͞͏̹Ê͚͈̤͈̽ͩ̈ͮ͑ ̷̸̺̳ͪ̓̐ͥ̉ͯ͜ͅR̎̕͏̨҉͖̠̮̝ ̛̟̘̝͕̦̞̇͑͘͢͜͡Aͯ̎ͫ͑ͬ̆̿͠͞͞͏̴͟͡҉̜͙̘̠̫̟ ̸̴̡̼̰̟͇̦͍̝͒̅ͥ̊ͨ̅͟G̸̷̵̢̛̹̠̞͔͊͑̎̊́̇̈́́ ̴̡̧̗͆ͯĄ̛̼̺͍̬̘̬ͯ͆̆̆ͩͫ̿ͧ̾ͥ̀͟͢͢͝͞͡I̴̸̻͛̈́͆ͮ͊̉̂̾̈́͠҉̸̧̢͕́͢N̴̢̾̈̚҉̴̵̨̩̫̦_**

I feel a howl building in my throat but before it can escape something hits my face hard enough for it to bounce back off the tile.

Suddenly, I can see the tiles to the floor in startling clarity and I raise my head.

The ringleader looks irritated, his features crisp in my state of sobriety.

"You dumbass! I told you not to hit him too hard or it would wear off!" He snaps at the kid with pointed ears.

I can feel blood sliding down the sides of my face, my lip is split and at least 3 of my ribs are cracked.

The blood rushing in my ears quiets down and I blink away the after images of **him**.

The shadows are howling and wailing for retribution and anger finds it way into my system.

My panic melts into white hot _rage _and I can see the shadows beginning to warp behind the group, long spindly lines of black stretching across the walls, leaving cracks and wire-like trails in it's wake.

Thick black liquid oozes from the cuts the shadows have made in reality, tearing a hole in the very logic of the universe itself to abide by my growing fury as the room darkens.

_'Well this is new' _I think to myself, belatedly, in the back of my mind.

The lights flicker ominously and I can see clawed fingers scraping along the tile, ripping it apart and sending dust into the air, fog creeping from the mouths of several humanoid shadows that cling to the walls.

The boys look around, grips slackening as the bathroom turns into a scene from a horror movie, doors slamming shut as creatures scuttle along the ceiling and walls, chittering away with disjointed voices overlapping in echoes of glass grinding together.

I flex my fingers into claws, eyes gleaming obsidian as shadows twist into grotesque shapes, nothing but sharp needle-like teeth and gleaming blood red eyes.

Fangs gleaming in flickering lights as tendrils creep up around the group, whispers of **_h̵̵̨̟̟ͦ̕̕͜͠o̵͕̱̘͈̬̘̻͐ͭ̾̐̎̕͝͞w̼͉͇̥͖̙̿̑d͊ͩ̑ͬ̚҉̮͉̼͈̼ą̵̝͑ͥ͊̾ͨr̷̶̡̢̲͔̘̳̘̊̔͆̽͢et̸ͪͤ͏̛̛̫̹̬he̡̨͔̪͖̻̫̞̎ͮ̿̚͟͟͡͠y_**̶̬̲̬̰̞̎̓ and **_w̲̞̞͙͎͚͂ͬ̄ͭ́͜͟e̷̛̛̜̟͎ͪ͋̔ͬ̔̀̔͘͘͘͢w̐̔͂ͯ͏̖̤̻͘͞ͅạ̴̧͓̮͕ͣ̃̃͡ͅn̶̒ͩ͘͏̱͉̼̀̕t̒̽̽͐ͪ̔͏̜̫̕̕ͅḇ̴̘͖̺͕̼͆̓͗͆͟l͎̪̙͉̮̠͒͝oơ̡̠̩͈̼ͪ̽̅͌͌́͘͡͝ḑ̷̶͈̯̯͚̘̲ͣ̀͜͟ _** bounce off the walls like thunder clapping, echoing in my ears alone.

"You better pick a god and _pray_." I snarl at the group of boys as I twist my left hand and jab my nails into Goon #2's ribs.

He yelps and scuttles away from me, lucky his skin crystalized in time because that was a blow meant to deal _blood_.

The shadows spring into action between one breath and the next, snaking around their limbs in a death grip, squeezing hard enough for me to hear small cracks and loud cries of pain.

I launch into action, slamming into one of the boys who had restrained me and sending us careening into a stall door that goes of it's hinges upon contact.

I leave him laying half in the toilet, blinking dazedly at the black ceiling, as I dive for the boy with the crystal quirk.

He gets out a strangled scream before his newly crystalized back breaks the sink and shatters the mirror, glass and ceramic raining down as the shadows slam into his temple hard enough to make him crumple upon contact.

The other three boys are watching with wide fearful eyes, horror painting their expressions, and skin so pale it's nearly grey.

"A-Akuma.**¹**" The boy on the left stutters, barely above a whisper and voice laden with terror.

My responding grin is all teeth as I slam my forehead into his, sending his shoulder-length silver hair flying as the shadows rip him backwards, sending him impacting a wall hard enough for it to crack.

I press one of my hands to the floor, acting on instinct more than anything.

Imagine my surprise when a shadow begins to come out of it, nearly nine feet tall, all thick limbs and 3 sets of glowing red eyes.

It's face is humanoid, but it's got a mane of smoke and pointy wolf-like ears, a thin reptilian-like tail smooths over the floor in a lazy wag.

Spines the length of my leg pop out of it's back, going down it's spine and ending just before it's double-jointed legs.

The Eldritch abomination, that I have apparently summoned, leans forward on it's burly forearms, coming face to face with the drug-quirk boy.

I watch as it's spines stand up and begin to tremble, filling the air with a haunting rattling noise, like bones being ground into dust.

The boy whimpers as the creature breathes out a sinister laugh at point-blank in his face, mouth stretching to show of an impossible amount of thin, needle-like teeth stuffed into it's mouth like an angler fish and- oh, he passed out.

_'What a shame'_

I turn to the leader, lips curling into a snarl.

"I hope this is a good reminder on why you don't try to corner children and beat them up, yes?" I sneer, idly running my free hand along the smooth surface of the beast's tail.

The leader looks at the shadow creature turning to look at him, it's face made of horrors and fresh nightmares, before turning back to me crouched on the ground and petting said creature.

"Shinigami**²**." He breathes with the utmost certainty, like he just found every secret to the universe in the black abyss of my eyes.

"Alright, he's lost it. Knock him out will ya, Darlin'?" I whisper to the shadows, last word curling with my accent thickening by the sudden wave of realization and fatigue that washes over me.

**"O͈̘̳͈͌̔́͞f̵̶̙͈̩̠͖͔̌͌ͥ́ c̡̠̺̘̊͜͡͞͡ͅou̸̡ͥ͠҉͇̕͜r̸̴̡͇͕̼͔̺̈́̕͢͡ş͍͈̞ͩ̓ͫ́͘͠͡͝ͅe̝͓ͩ͆̃ͮ̏́,̧ͩ͆̀͟͏̵̦̘̜͓̰ a̗͇͊͋̕͠͠n̨͖̬͍̺̄̚̕͝yţ͓͓̤̟̘ͤͬͫ̓̇͘͢͠h͒̑͋҉̶̴̭͘i̓̚n̡ͮͬͪ́͏̷̜͖̹̳̘ͅg̨̅ͮ͌̊҉̛͜͞͏̘͔̩̼̗ ḟ̧̛͕̎ͦͮ̓ͤ̀͝͞͠ȯ̊̕̕͜͟͠͏͔͎̪r̢̬͂̍̂͌ͭ͝͝ÿ̡͍́͌ͥ́ͨͨ͞o̢͔̹͋̒͗ͧ͟ų̷͖̠͔͔͋̑́̍ͤ̊͝" **The shadow whispers back, voice like gravel, a deep noise that rumbles in it's chest and rattles in it's throat on the way out.

The creature raises a large hand and slams it into the side of the boy's head, sending him sailing into another stall.

I suddenly sway a little, tired from... _Whatever _I just did with my quirk.

The creature's form wavers and it disappears like smoke.

The room brightens, lines and strange goop fading into nothing and leaving me in a suddenly _very bright_ and **very trashed** bathroom.

I sigh, licking my lips absentmindedly as I shuffle out of the bathroom to go find my bag and clean up.

**xXx**

The next day Katsuki heard all about my little battle in the bathroom because people would _not stop _referring to me as Shinigami*****.

Katsuki stopped having doctor's appointments after school after that.

And, turns out I can basically call forth the 9th realm of Hell, with the creatures to match if I use enough energy.

However, considering the fact that I passed out for 3 days afterwards, I'm not likely to try that again for a little bit.

Maybe next time I should start out small?

Hmmm...

* * *

**Some characters are OOC for this chapter but since we don't know much about canon Katsuki or canon Izuku's background, I think it's safe to let it slide. I'm NOT abandoning this story, there's just been a lot of things going on recently and writers block is kicking my ass. I also apologize in advance because my update schedule is gonna be kinda wonky for a while, but I'm gonna be making some chapters longer to make up for it.**

**1: *Demon/Devil**

**2: Means God of Death or Death Spirit **


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